<!DOCTYPE html>
<html>
<head>
<meta charset="UTF-8">
<title>Death in the Wilderness by etrix</title>
<style type="text/css">

body { background-color: #ffffff; }
.CI {
text-align:center;
margin-top:0px;
margin-bottom:0px;
padding:0px;
}
.center   {text-align: center;}
.cover    {text-align: center;}
.full     {width: 100%; }
.quarter  {width: 25%; }
.smcap    {font-variant: small-caps;}
.u        {text-decoration: underline;}
.bold     {font-weight: bold;}
</style>
</head>
<body>
<h1><a href="https://archiveofourown.org/works/23762704">Death in the Wilderness</a> by <a class='authorlink' href='https://archiveofourown.org/users/etrix/pseuds/etrix'>etrix</a></h1>

<table class="full">

<tr><td><b>Category:</b></td><td>Supernatural, Time Team RPF</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Genre:</b></td><td>American History, Archaeology, Bad language is bleeped out, Case Fic, Cross-Posted on FanFiction.Net, Crossover, Crossovers &amp; Fandom Fusions, Filming, Gen, Historical Slavery, Historical character death, Historical extreme violence, Original Character Death(s), Pre-Canon, Season/Series 10, Set in Missouri, Supernatural Elements, Unaired episode, transcript style</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Language:</b></td><td>English</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Status:</b></td><td>Completed</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Published:</b></td><td>2020-04-21</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Updated:</b></td><td>2020-04-21</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Packaged:</b></td><td>2021-05-02 17:47:33</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Rating:</b></td><td>Mature</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Warnings:</b></td><td>No Archive Warnings Apply</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Chapters:</b></td><td>5</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Words:</b></td><td>28,473</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Publisher:</b></td><td>archiveofourown.org</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Story URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/works/23762704</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Author URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/users/etrix/pseuds/etrix</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Summary:</b></td><td><div class="userstuff">
              <p>A British archaeological show is in Missouri to film the excavation of a massacre, which went weird before they even showed up. Two people seem to know what's going on, but one's as mysterious as the green fire in the bone tent. And their explanation of ghosts and possessions has no place in a science show. </p><p>Will the Time Team all make it out of Missouri alive? Tune in to find out. (pre-series SPN/S10 Time Team)</p>
            </div></td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Comments:</b></td><td>27</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Kudos:</b></td><td>13</td></tr>

</table>

<a name="section0001"><h2>1. Introduction</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Author's Note:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
      <p>I’ve placed this in 2003, as that’s one of the last years that Carenza Lewis was active on the team. Sam would’ve been at Stanford, and it’s plausible that John and Dean were already working separately. </p><p>Thanks to: My beta readers (and fellow Time Team fans) cryptid and BG. Thanks to BG especially, for Brit picking and general editorial. She’s very good at what she does.</p>
    </blockquote><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff"><p>I made this map using Inkarnate (https://inkarnate.com/) after helping Spawn 1 design a city for their D&amp;D campaign. </p><p> </p><p>  <a href="http://www.mediafire.com/view/vrsrsqdoq6saxip"></a><br/></p><p> </p><p>I didn’t capture the slope from the ceremony site up to the Time Team trenches very well, but that’s on me because the program is slick.</p></blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>[Transcriber's note: Filmed 2003 as part of Series 10. First Aired March 2018]</p>
<hr/><p>
  <strong>[Scene Cut Image and Drums]</strong>
</p><p>
  <strong>TIME TEAM: DEATH IN THE WILDERNESS (official transcript)</strong>
</p><p>In a mostly empty stage, an old Channel 4 logo displays on four screens hanging in the background. In the middle stands a man, middle-aged and clean. The presenter is dressed to look like a field archaeologist, but the fashion-plate one.</p><p><strong>Presenter: </strong>During a recent remodel of Channel 4’s head office, workers discovered hundreds of hours of unaired material in a little used storage room. Much of the material was pilots for programmes that were never aired. However, there was also a full episode worth of raw footage for what was, at one time, Channel 4’s flagship series, <em>Time Team</em>.</p><p>[The background images change to the <em>Time Team</em> graphic. As the presenter moves around the studio, the images show the team together at some of their most memorable digs or with their most remarkable finds.]</p><p><strong>Presenter</strong>: A frankly <em>nerdy</em> show, its premise was simple: Britain’s archaeological history belongs to all of us. It is, in fact, in our back gardens. Ordinary citizens would write to the Time Team about digging a pond in their back garden, or a grave for a beloved pet, and coming across something extraordinary, and the Time Team would come out with their historians, their archaeologists, and their fancy “geophys”, and find out exactly what was going on under the lawn.</p><p><strong>Presenter:</strong> Tony Robinson hosted <em>Time Team </em>for all its 20 years. Yet, when the series first aired<strong>, he </strong>was probably better known for his role as Baldric in the <em>Blackadder</em> comedy series. Now Sir Tony, he had this to say about <em>Time Team</em>’s ability to make archaeology accessible: “Prior to us, … archaeology was something you could only really appreciate if you read books with long words in them.” A comment on the standard RP narrated lectures that were the usual historical fare on the television.</p><p><strong>Presenter: </strong>Between 1994 and 2014, <em>Time Team</em> broadcast over 250 episodes and nearly 60 specials, including its infamous “Big Digs”. At its height, <em>Time Team </em>drew weekly audiences of 3.5 million viewers, and it was, for a time, Britain’s leading funder of archaeological excavations.</p><p><strong>Presenter: </strong>But they didn’t just dig in the UK. Their extensive knowledge, their advanced equipment—and their access to funding—meant the Time Team was invited to dig up history in Spain, France, the Netherlands, the West Indies, and like this lost episode, in the United States of America.</p><p><strong>Presenter: </strong>The footage for this episode was never assembled into an episode, and you’ll see why. The team barely has a chance to bring their expertise to bear before the dig goes wrong. Nevertheless, they kept filming, kept digging, kept trying to solve the mystery they’d been invited in to solve, until they had to concede defeat. In the end the footage was put on a shelf – forgotten for 15 years.</p><p><strong>Presenter: </strong>But now our team reviewed all the footage and assembled this, the last <em>Time Team</em> special. We call it “Death in the Wilderness”.</p><p><strong>Presenter: </strong>Just a final note before the episode starts. The core team always wore wireless mikes, though they usually weren’t recorded unless the camera was also filming. That said, some of what’s been included in this episode was recorded off camera. It is included only where it provides information pertinent to the events of the dig.</p>
  </div><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_foot_notes"><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
          <p>If you spot any typos or factual errors, please let me know. I'm not an archaeological expert by any means. However, I may ignore any corrections I get. (Sorry, but story first.)</p><p>Speaking of factual errors... A lot of filming goes on in my hometown. I have worked in, and still have friends in the industry. They may never read this story of mine, but I apologize to them in absentia for all the shortcuts I've taken with the filming a TV show – even an "unscripted" one like Time Team.</p>
        </blockquote></div></div>
<a name="section0002"><h2>2. Part I</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff"><p>There is some frank discussion of some of the more brutal aspects of American history (slavery, the Trail of Tears) and some other things that could've resulted in a mass grave in the middle of nowhere.</p><p>There is also an exploration of  the categorization of bones into population types that contain (possibly more than) borderline offensive terms. However, these are the <i>scientific</i> classifications, and they are still taught. I included it because it's relevant to the plot, but I've tried to make it clear that bone shapes aren't proof of anything (because they really aren't unless it's leprosy or syphilis).</p></blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>
  <strong>[Front credits - Banner: Part I]</strong>
</p><p>The sun shines. On the right, a stepped mound dominates the rest of the landscape. The field in front of it is lush green. The forested area on the other side of the field is dotted with cows, kept in place by a heavy wire fence.</p><p>Tony Robinson steps into frame.</p><p><strong>Tony</strong>: This week, the Time Team is in Granville, Missouri, nearly 250 miles from St. Louis. All over the southern and middle states of America, for hundreds of miles in every direction, there are Native American mounds – <em>thousands</em> of them. They had to have built by people in an organized, <em>settled</em> society. Yet, when the Europeans showed up just over 300 years ago, this county was almost <em>completely</em> devoid of people.</p><p><strong>Tony: </strong>First the French and the Spanish; then the Americans came. At the start, they moved quietly through the wilderness, disturbing little. Then ranchers and farmers came, and they built towns. Towns attracted the railroads, railroads brought <em>more</em> people, and towns became cities.</p><p><strong>Tony: </strong>As the white population grew, the Native American populations were squeezed out – off the land they’d lived on for <em>thousands</em> of years. First through treaty and then through force. Thousands died.</p><p><strong>Tony</strong>: In the early 1800s, Mormons came to Missouri, seeking a land where they could worship their splinter religion in peace. They didn’t find it. Instead, a series of bloody battles were fought between the Mormons, their protestant neighbours, and local militias, and people died in those too.</p><p><strong>Tony: </strong>Missouri was also a <em>slave</em> state. They didn't have the massive plantations of Virginia or South Carolina, but many of the farms and ranches relied on the forced labour of enslaved Africans. Their deaths were barely recorded.</p><p><strong>Tony: </strong>During the American Civil War, Missouri's citizens were divided between the anti-slavery Union, and the pro-slavery Confederacy. The battles fought in the state were brutal – literally brother against brother – with <em>hundreds</em> of dead on both sides.</p><p><strong>Tony: </strong>But none of these things happened here.</p><p>Tony leans close to the camera.</p><p><strong>Tony: </strong>Or did they? We’ve got three days to find out.</p><p>He steps out of frame</p><p>[CUT TO]<strong><br/></strong></p><p>The camera swings from showing the mound to showing a small valley. In the valley, just visible through thin, nearly leaf-less trees, is a large, square-ish trench, a dirt track, and a large canvas tent. Tony steps into frame and stops at the top of the slope.</p><p><strong>Tony:</strong> Last year, Pete Yarborough, a local rancher, decided to build a new barn – (pointing at the square trench) – right over there. But when he dug the foundation, he found bones. <em>Human</em> bones.</p><p><strong>Tony: </strong>He called the local sheriff, but it turned out that the remains were a little older than the police could investigate – something like <em>250 years</em> <em>older</em> – and that’s when he called in Greg Germaine of the Missouri Archaeological Society. He also sent a letter to <em>Time Team.</em></p><p>[CUT TO]</p><p>In a patch of fading sun, Pete Yarborough, a white male, clean-shaven, early 30s, stands comfortable in jeans, Western shirt and cowboy hat. He holds a sheet of paper and reads:</p><p><strong>Pete Yarborough</strong>: Dear Time Team. I was diggin’ a foundation for a new feed barn when I scraped up some bones. Sheriff says they’re human bones, ‘bout 200 years old. This ain’t somethin’ that happens a lot here – it’s certainly never happened to me before. If you come to Missouruh an’ figure out why there’re dead bodies in my back forty, I’ll give you a barbeque to die for.</p><p><strong>Pete: </strong>Signed Pete Yar’bruh, Northwest Nine Ranch, Missouruh.</p><p>
  <strong>[Logo and Drum Break]</strong>
</p><p>The mound dominates the shot. It rises out of the trees on top of the hill, before the camera pans down into the gully. In the distance, a car passes on a paved road.</p><p><strong>Tony</strong>: [voice over] We’re not the only ones in Pete Yarborough’s “back forty”.</p><p>In the gully, a hard-packed dirt track runs from a distant paved road. It’s lined on the left, by a white-painted, wooden fence. Tony walks along the right-side of the track.</p><p><strong>Tony</strong>: By law, the county sheriff is required to notify the state archaeological society when they find historical human remains, so the Missouri Archaeological Society has a team here, and they’ve been hard at work in and around where Pete <em>found</em> the bones – (gesturing further forward) Just up there. So far, they’ve found an <em>incredibly</em> dense burial site, with evidence of at least <em>eleven</em> <em>bodies</em>.</p><p><strong>Tony: </strong>Were they Native Americans? Were they American soldiers of European descent? Were they African slaves?</p><p><strong>Tony: </strong>Quite frankly, they don’t know. But they’ve brought in an expert to do a close examination of the bones in order to determine their ethnic group. (stepping close to the camera) I didn’t even know that was possible.</p><p>He heads across the track to a branching path that goes up the hill, walking over a cattle grid set over a culvert.</p><p>[CUT TO]</p><p>The camera stays in the gully and pans left to show the slope getting steeper but no higher. At the base of it, the Missouri team’s square trench sits in an area barren of trees. Just a short distance beyond it, the dirt track goes up a short rise, meeting the hilltop, and disappearing into more trees.</p><p><strong>Tony</strong>: [voice over] So where does the Time Team come in – why are <em>we</em> here? Well, the human body contains a lot of small bones, and the Missouri team doesn’t want to miss any of them.</p><p>Opposite the American trench, is their finds tent. There are a couple visible tears. Parked in front of the tent, a Fulham County Sheriff’s 4x4 is surrounded by a crowd. Mick Aston is visible because of his brightly striped anorak.</p><p>[CUT TO]</p><p>Tony is out of the forest, in front of the Time Team’s finds tent.</p><p><strong>Tony</strong>: So, while they carefully sift for those, we’re going to see if there are any clues to what happened  up here. Because that’s where Pete found this when he first moved here five years ago.  </p><p>Tony holds up a corroded spoon.</p><p><strong>Tony</strong>: [voice over] He didn’t think anything of it at the time, but now he’s wondering if it belonged to the bodies down there. (lowering the spoon) Of course, after so long, he doesn’t remember <em>exactly</em> where he found it, so we’ll have to survey the <em>whole field</em>.</p><p>Tony takes a couple steps to the right revealing Carenza Lewis and Phil Harding waiting next to a white 4x4 with the Time Team logo on the bonnet.</p><p><strong>Tony:</strong> Phil! What’s going on? Why aren’t we digging?</p><p><strong>Phil</strong>: Well, because the police are ‘ere. And the site director is talkin’ to them instead of uz.</p><p><strong>Carenza</strong>: Quite rightly, too.</p><p><strong>Tony</strong>: Do we know <em>why</em> the police are here?</p><p>Zoomed in shot of the crowd near sheriff’s vehicle. A tall, older, white man – grey hair pulled back in a long ponytail – talks to the group. He waves his hands to try and calm them down. Mick stands close, looking calm.</p><p><strong>Phil:</strong> Apparently, a couple days ago, someone went into their finds tent, smashed all the ‘quipment, an’ stole some of the finds.</p><p><strong>Tony:</strong> That’s <em>awful</em>, but it was days ago, and over <em>there</em>. Why can’t we start our trenches up here in the field?</p><p><strong>Phil</strong>: It’s not our site!</p><p><strong>Carenza</strong>: [banner: Carenza Lewis, Field Archaeologist, Royal Commission for Historic Monuments] It would be incredibly bad form to open a trench without the site director’s approval, Tony.</p><p><strong>Phil</strong>: Incredibly bad! He’ll have ideas about where ‘e wants uz to dig.</p><p><strong>Tony</strong>: I thought this was all agreed weeks ago – before we flew out?</p><p>In the zoomed in image, Mick leaves the huddle around the sheriff and walks towards the group.</p><p><strong>Carenza</strong>: The Missouri team has been here for nearly two weeks now. Things may have changed. We simply <em>can’t</em> go ahead until we have Dr Germaine’s okay.</p><p><strong>Phil</strong>: [banner: Phil Harding, Field Archaeologist, Wessex Trust] Until Dr Germaine approves the number and locations of our trenches, the diggers’ll just ‘ave to drink their tea.</p><p><strong>Tony</strong>: Alright, alright. I know when I’ve lost.</p><p><strong>Carenza</strong>: We <em>have</em> got them field-walking.</p><p><strong>John Gater</strong>: (stepping into frame) And geophys hasn’t been drinking tea.</p><p><strong>Tony</strong>: Excellent! At least someone’s getting results.</p><p><strong>John</strong>: Not great ones, I’m afraid.</p><p>Mick steps into the group.</p><p><strong>Tony:</strong> Mick! What's going on?</p><p><strong>Mick</strong>: Just follow-up, apparently. The police think it was a bunch of teenagers having a lark.</p><p><strong>Phil:</strong> Out 'ere? It took uz nearly an ‘our to get 'ere from the nearest town.</p><p><strong>Carenza</strong>: It does seem like a lot of work for a lark.</p><p><strong>Mick:</strong> Yes, well. Greg disagreed – energetically. Why would kids leave the bones, but target the electronics?</p><p><strong>Carenza:</strong> Everything's smashed?</p><p><strong>Mick:</strong> [banner: Prof Mick Aston, Bristol University] Whatever equipment was in the tent, yeah. But they’ve been taking the expensive stuff out with them each night, because theft <em>is</em> a problem around here, apparently. Usually of farm equipment and such, not archaeological items.</p><p><strong>Tony:</strong> Yes, well, that’s terrible, but are we going to be able to <em>dig</em>?</p><p><strong>Phil:</strong> Yeah, what Tony said.</p><p><strong>Mick:</strong> (nodding) Yes, yes. We can dig.</p><p><strong>Phil:</strong> Wun’erful!</p><p><strong>Carenza:</strong> Excellent.</p><p><strong>Tony:</strong> Do you know <em>where</em> we’re going to dig?</p><p><strong>Mick:</strong> Anywhere in this upper field, he said. So anywhere up here.</p><p>Image changes to a long shot of the team pacing over the large field, field walking. A cow, chewing its cud, ambles along the far side next to the wire-net fence.</p><p><strong>Mick</strong>: I’m hoping John has some clues for us.</p><p>Everyone turns to John, who fidgets uncomfortably, and lifts his clipboard.</p><p><strong>John:</strong> Well. We’ve got a problem. This area’s geology is mostly shale covered by glacial till.</p><p><strong>Tony:</strong> What does that mean?</p><p><strong>John:</strong> [banner: John Gater, Archaeological Geophysicist] The technical definition is that it’s unsorted materials—rocks and stones and such—deposited by glaciers into clay or sandy soil. Sometimes it’s a loose layer. Sometimes it’s packed like cement. This area is mostly the latter.</p><p><strong>Phil:</strong> Tha’ doesn’t sound good.</p><p><strong>John:</strong> Well, I’m glad I’m not digging in it!</p><p>They all laugh.</p><p><strong>John:</strong> Worse, though. It’s made the geophys very fuzzy. This is the magnetics in the area closest to the barn site – where the bodies were found.</p><p>The magnetics report is mostly red, with a couple spots that come close to black.</p><p><strong>Mick:</strong> Oh dear. That’s not clear at all, is it.</p><p><strong>John:</strong> No, it isn’t. It gets a little better farther from their trench, but not much. (pulling in a deep breath) And here’s the resistance–</p><p>A close up of his survey looks more like TV channel fuzz than anything. There are a couple darker patches and maybe a line or two. He circles them with his pen tip.</p><p><strong>John:</strong> [off screen] It’s still not very good, but it does match the resistance.</p><p><strong>Mick:</strong> So what are those?</p><p>Close up of Mick pointing at a couple of the darker patches.</p><p><strong>John:</strong> I’m not sure. They could be faults in the underlying stone, or they <em>could</em> be signs of a settlement, but I’ve never seen results like this before so I really couldn’t say.</p><p><strong>Tony:</strong> They seem a little small for a farmhouse.</p><p><strong>Phil:</strong> Well, they might not be, really. We think of the settlin' of North America as startin' when the Europeans arrived. But there were people 'ere before ‘at.</p><p><strong>Tony</strong>: But weren’t Native Americans migratory?</p><p><strong>Carenza</strong>: (shaking her head) Only recently. This whole area – between the Missouri and Mississippi rivers, up to the border between America and Canada – has been occupied almost continually since pre-history, and some of those cultures <em>did</em> build permanent settlements.</p><p><strong>Tony:</strong> So how far back are we talking? Iron Age? Bronze Age?</p><p><strong>Mick:</strong> They don’t use those terms in American archaeology.</p><p><strong>Tony</strong>: Why not?</p><p><strong>Carenza</strong>: Because those terms are very-much derived from European cultures and how <em>they</em> developed.</p><p><strong>Mick</strong>: Many of the societies in North America never developed metalcraft the way we did in Europe. Hard to describe an era with material that wasn’t widely used</p><p><strong>Phil</strong>: They used a lot of flint, though!</p><p><strong>John:</strong> (laughing) That’ll make you happy.</p><p><strong>Phil:</strong> Too right, it does.</p><p>They all laugh.</p><p><strong>Tony:</strong> So, if we’re not looking at European settlement, how far back do they reckon the settlement goes?</p><p><strong>Mick:</strong> They’ve dated finds in neighbouring counties to 9,000 years ago.</p><p><strong>Tony:</strong> <em>9,000 years!</em> (turning to Carenza and Phil) He’s having me on.</p><p><strong>Carenza:</strong> He’s not. Some sites in Missouri have been dated back to <em>13,000</em> years ago.</p><p><strong>Tony:</strong> <em>Thirteen... </em>Blimey! Is that something we have to be on the look-out for? Ancient artefacts and ruins?</p><p><strong>Carenza:</strong> Well, aside from the one right over there, it very unlikely.</p><p>Tony twists his head around. The shot changes to one of the mound.</p><p><strong>Tony</strong>: You mean that hill?</p><p><strong>Carenza:</strong> It’s not a hill. It’s a mound. Probably 700 to 1,500 years old.</p><p><strong>Tony</strong>: We don’t have to excavate <em>that</em> do we?</p><p><strong>Phil:</strong> Absolutely not!</p><p><strong>Carenza</strong>: We can't even <em>attempt</em> that in the time we've got, Tony.</p><p><strong>Mick:</strong> (shaking his head) No, absolutely not! Those are protected sites. Our job is to, hopefully, find buildings over <em>here</em> that date from 200 or 300 years ago. To go with the bodies Pete found.</p><p><strong>Phil: </strong>And to do tha’ we need to dig a trench.</p><p><strong>Mick:</strong> (laughing) True enough. Now that I’ve seen the geophys –</p><p>Mick points out his locations on John’s geophys printout.</p><p><strong>Mick</strong>: [voice over] – I’m thinking a moderate trench here. And another one here.</p><p><strong>Tony</strong>: It’s not much to go on.</p><p><strong>Mick</strong>: No, I grant you that, but the spots did show up on both sets of results so…</p><p><strong>John</strong>: We’ll finish up the rest of the field, and then we’ll try radar.</p><p><strong>Tony:</strong> That’s settled then. (rubbing his hands) What are we waiting for?</p><p>[CUT TO]</p><p>The Time Team moves in – diggers wearing helmets and carrying shovels, crossing the cattle grid. A small JVC motors slowly beside them.</p><p>Ian Powlesland, in the JVC, scrapes off the top layer of Trench 1 while Phil watches. The spoil is carefully piled to one side. Two young interns set up sieves to sift it, while a shaggy-haired metal detectorist waves his wand over it.</p><p>Carenza indicates where she wants Trench 2. Henry Chapman, the surveyor marks the line with his GPS.</p><p>[CUT TO]</p><p>Near Trench 1, Phil examines a find handed to him by one of the field walkers. He points out features in the flint point.</p><p><strong>Phil</strong>: [voice over] So, the peoples ‘ere ‘it this flint at a diff’rent angle than they did in Britain, and it makes diff’rent patterns on the edge, see? Because they put the ridge in ‘ere, it dips ‘ere, and the edge becomes almost a serration.</p><p><strong>Field walker</strong>: It’s still really sharp. Why’d they leave it here.</p><p>Phil turns the point over, running his fingers over it.</p><p><strong>Phil</strong>: It flaked out out wrong. ‘ere, see? This section’s too thin.</p><p>Close up of the flint point.</p><p><strong>Field walker</strong>: Oh yeah. They must’ve been pretty bummed out when that happened.</p><p><strong>Phil</strong>: Oh, aye! I know exactly how that feels.</p><p>Phil lifts the flint to his face for a closer look.</p><p><strong>Phil</strong>: Such a shame…</p><p>[CUT TO]</p><p>Tony and Mick stand on the mound with a tall, older, white man dressed in cargo shorts and short-sleeve shirt. His blondish-grey hair is tied back in a low ponytail.</p><p>Off the mound, half-hidden by a steep drop into the valley, the Missouri team work their large, mostly-square trench.</p><p>On the right of the screen, in the open field, the Time Team’s two trenches are well established. The JVC sits idle.</p><p><strong>Tony</strong>: Well, it’s just about lunch time, and Greg Germaine, the head of this project, is finally able to join us. Greg. You’re free!</p><p><strong>Greg Germaine</strong>: For now. There’s still paperwork, but I wanted to check in with you.</p><p><strong>Tony:</strong> You’re not going to tell us anything?</p><p><strong>Greg:</strong> (glancing at the camera) Can’t. It’s an active investigation.</p><p><strong>Tony:</strong> Can you tell us if anything important was taken?</p><p><strong>Greg:</strong> Nothing. They just came and smashed things. It’s very frustrating.</p><p><strong>Mick</strong>: But you are carrying on, though. Right?</p><p><strong>Greg:</strong> Yes, of course. [banner: Greg Germaine, Field Archaeologist, Missouri Archaeological Society] The site still has to be dug. Every one – and every<em>thing</em>, of course – must be found. And your team’s presence in the field should help. Your geophysics surveys will be most helpful.</p><p><strong>Mick:</strong> (smiling) Of course. Any way we can help.</p><p><strong>Tony:</strong> (rubbing his hands together) Well, since you can’t talk about this morning’s excitement, let’s talk about the dig.</p><p><strong>Greg:</strong> That’s why I’m here now. Instead of working.</p><p><strong>Tony:</strong> Well my first question has to be: why here? (waving his arm) I mean, there’s <em>miles</em> of empty land in every direction. Why did they settle in <em>this</em> <em>field</em>?</p><p><strong>Greg:</strong> Probably, because of this…</p><p>Greg taps the mound with his foot.</p><p><strong>Tony</strong>: The mound?</p><p>The image pulls out to show them standing on the flat area on top. There are no trees on it, but there are grasses and flowers.</p><p><strong>Greg</strong>: [voice over] In some places these mounds have been dated to around 3500 BCE.</p><p>The image pulls out further to show them standing on the steep, man-made hill. There is one large step in front, then the flat top. The ground falls away behind it. There are trees on the north side, the treed gully on the south, and the long empty field in front.</p><p><strong>Tony:</strong> [voice over] You meant this is <em>5,000 years old?</em></p><p><strong>Greg</strong>: (shrugging) Honestly? Not likely. In Missouri, most of the material we’ve found in our mounds seem to date from anywhere between 500 to about 1200 CE – what we call the Woodland Period.</p><p><strong>Greg</strong>: What makes this one unusual is that it’s so far from the river – far east of where these were usually built. That’s why it’s important for it to be fully mapped and surveyed. We just need a complete survey of it. Every non-invasive recording you can do. Then it can be properly registered and protected.</p><p><strong>Tony:</strong> Geophys is going to love hauling their equipment up and down these slopes!</p><p><strong>Mick</strong>: (laughing) I brought extra muscle rub. John’ll have to find someone else to put it on him, though.</p><p>Mick and Tony laugh. Greg just looks puzzled.</p><p><strong>Tony</strong>: So, while John and Henry are working here, what about the rest of our team? We’ve already started a couple trenches. Looking for houses or whatnot.</p><p><strong>Greg</strong>: And that’s exactly what they should be doing.</p><p>Greg brings a few sample bags into frame.</p><p><strong>Greg:</strong> So far we’ve found thirteen skeletons –</p><p><strong>Tony</strong>: I thought it was eleven?</p><p><strong>Greg</strong>: We found more.</p><p><strong>Tony</strong>: <em>Thirteen </em>bodies! That’s a massacre!</p><p><strong>Mick</strong>: Or a graveyard.</p><p><strong>Greg</strong>: (shaking his head) Not a graveyard. The bodies weren’t laid out – there was no care. And we’ve found nothing that could be considered grave goods. What we found are <em>these</em>…</p><p>Greg holds out his hand, and the image changes to show the sample bags. Tony and Mick poke through them they speak.</p><p><strong>Tony:</strong> [voice over] That looks like a thimble.</p><p><strong>Mick</strong>: [voice over] And those are bone buttons, I think. And a metal belt buckle. Native Americans didn’t use those.</p><p><strong>Greg:</strong> That’s right. These are definitely made by and for Europeans. Probably three hundred years ago – give or take fifty years. Probably colonists, rather than hunters, from the quality.</p><p>More shots of the finds bags. One clearly contains coins. Another has thick, curved pieces of glass from a cup or bowl.</p><p><strong>Mick:</strong> So probably Spanish or French?</p><p><strong>Greg:</strong> Well, those were the first Europeans to settle in Missouri, but only in small numbers. It took another 50 years after the Louisiana Purchase for white settlers to really dig in.</p><p><strong>Tony:</strong> Just in time for the American Civil War.</p><p><strong>Greg:</strong> Forget the Civil War – there were no battles fought in this county.</p><p><strong>Tony:</strong> So settlers then. Are there records? Land grants or claims?</p><p><strong>Greg:</strong> (shaking his head) None matching the probable date of these artefacts. In fact, nothing even close until Philip Granville claimed a parcel nearby in 1827.</p><p><strong>Mick</strong>: And that’s the town of Granville, 45 minutes away by car.</p><p><strong>Greg</strong>. That’s right. It would’ve been easy to remain unnoticed by the white authorities – if that’s what these people wanted.</p><p><strong>Tony: </strong>But not French or Spanish fur traders?</p><p>Dr Germaine lifts the bag with the glass pieces.</p><p><strong>Greg:</strong> [voice over] With wine glasses? Now, we know there was a structure over there –</p><p>Greg points to his trench, surrounded by work tents, and busy with people.</p><p><strong>Greg</strong>: – where we found the remains, because we found a tiled floor. But it’s too small for a house or a barn. It could have been a small trading outpost –</p><p><strong>Mick</strong>: This far from the river?</p><p><strong>Greg</strong>: (shrugging) Unlikely, but I don’t want to rule it out. Now, I know the owner requested you come and help, so what I need you to do is to determine the size of the compound. Were there other buildings, for instance? Where’s their transport? They had to have gotten here somehow.</p><p><strong>Tony</strong>: Surely they would have set up in the valley? Next to the other building?</p><p><strong>Greg</strong>: (shaking his head) We've found nothing indicating that. No. Up here, in view of the mound. That's where you'll find the goods they left behind.</p><p>Insert a pan of the field with Phil and Carenza’s trenches.</p><p><strong>Greg</strong>: [voice over] Now, I saw your magnetometer and resistance survey results, and they’re exactly the same as the results we got – useless! Which… Well, the owner picked that spot for his barn for a reason.</p><p><strong>Tony</strong>: Oh?</p><p><strong>Greg</strong>: He called it a “dead zone”. Nothing grew there – even the grass was sparse.</p><p>The image goes back to the American trench. Compared to the density near the paved road, the lack of any trees near the limestone tiles is obvious.</p><p><strong>Tony</strong>: [voice over] Well, yeah. But it has a stone-floored building under it.</p><p><strong>Greg</strong>: [voice over] The null results extend far past where our building ends. Nearly 50 feet – like a blast radius.</p><p><strong>Mick</strong>: We could dig some test pits in the dead zone. Grid it out. See what we can find.</p><p><strong>Greg</strong>: Test pits. That’s a long shot…</p><p><strong>Tony</strong>: Seems to me most of archaeology is a long shot. You’re hoping for a palace and all you get is the loo.</p><p><strong>Mick</strong>: (smiling) Yeah, well. Maybe we <em>will</em> find a midden. They’re always interesting.</p><p><strong>Greg</strong>: I doubt it, but test pits are the best idea we have. Now I need to go back. This last body we found is going to be a bit difficult to remove.</p><p>Greg starts to unhook his mike pack.</p><p><strong>Tony</strong>: Would it be possible to come down later and get a tour?</p><p><strong>Greg</strong>: (nodding) … after lunch… show you th … ones.</p><p>Greg hands Tony his mike equipment. Then he walks away.</p><p><strong>Tony</strong>: Well, that was a little abrupt.</p><p><strong>Mick</strong>: Can’t blame him really. His work tent has been vandalized. He has the police, the insurance, and the bureaucrats poking around. [voice over] I’d hate to work with that kind of attention.</p><p>Dr Germaine marches down the slope of the mound. It cuts to Tony waving at someone out of frame. A moment later, Henry joins them.</p><p><strong>Tony</strong>: Henry! You’re mapping the mound with your GPS. How’s it going?</p><p><strong>Henry</strong>: Slowly. [banner: Henry Chapman, Surveyor] You don’t realize how steep it is until you’ve been up and down it a few times.</p><p><strong>Mick</strong>: That’s why I’m only climbing it once.</p><p>They laugh.</p><p><strong>Henry</strong>: I don’t envy the geophys team, lugging their kit over it.</p><p><strong>Tony</strong>: Will you have it done in three days?</p><p><strong>Henry</strong>: I should have it done today.</p><p><strong>Tony</strong>: That’s <em>wonderful</em>! Have fun then.</p><p><strong>Henry:</strong> Thanks. I will.</p><p>Henry walks away. Tony looks to the camera – likely to wrap up the sequence – when Mick grabs his arm.</p><p><strong>Mick</strong>: While we were standing here, I was looking over the field. Look – [pointing) Can you see the crop marks? Right near Phil’s trench. Just off to the side a bit.</p><p><strong>Tony</strong>: Where …</p><p>The camera pans over the area around Phil’s trench. Then the image is frozen and the deep green crop mark’s highlighted. It’s an irregular triangular shape, pushing away from the American dig site, and into the side of the hill</p><p><strong>Mick</strong>: [voice over] See that bit of darker green grass…</p><p><strong>Tony</strong>: [voice over] Oh yeah! It’s a bit fat for a crop mark, though.</p><p><strong>Mick</strong>: [voice over] Maybe it’s a wide foundation. For a large house, or such.</p><p>The camera continues to pan.</p><p><strong>Tony</strong>: [voice over] There’s not much.</p><p><strong>Mick</strong>: [voice over] Maybe they didn’t get a chance to finish it.</p><p>Mick and Tony in profile looking down over the long field.</p><p><strong>Mick</strong>: Still… I think we’ll have a look at that.</p><p>They start down the mound, but the camera stays where it is. The image switches to them halfway down the hill. The sound breaks up as their clothing hit the mikes.</p><p><strong>Tony</strong>: [voice over] Do you think it was a trading post?</p><p><strong>Mick</strong>: [voice over] No, not based … we’ve seen so far. It’s more likely to be a family … -rents, their offspring and spouses … child or two.</p><p><strong>Tony</strong>: [voice over] Careful there!</p><p><strong>Mick</strong>: [voice over] Oo, that’s steep!</p><p><strong>Tony:</strong> [voice over] But if it <em>was</em> … come so far out into the wilderness? Even now … it’s pretty isolated.</p><p><strong>Mick:</strong> [voice over] A good question that. … had a <em>reason</em>. I just don’t think … find out what ….</p><p><strong>Tony</strong>: [voice over] I hate that!</p><p><strong>Mick</strong>: [voice over] I know you do, Tone</p><p>[CUT TO]</p><p>At the base of the mound, the geophys 4x4 is parked, boot door open to provide shade. John watches anxiously as the two geophys team members head up the slope with the magnetometer. Progress is slow, and the one with the probe seems to use it to hike herself up.</p><p>Carrying his GPS pole, Henry walks easily around the side.</p><p>[CUT TO]</p><p>Carenza Lewis and three diggers shovel away the stony dirt in a trench maybe 20 cm deep. Phil supervises as Ian uses the JVC to scrape off the top layer of sickly turf from the extension of Trench 1.</p><p><strong>Tony</strong>: [voice over] Once we got down - and that was a bit hazardous, let me tell you - we asked Phil to expand his trench over the crop marks we’d seen. He was happy to do it. Then Mick set up some teams to mark out the dead zone and dig some test pits. One of the things we need to be careful of is the heat. It’s 80 degrees Fahrenheit already, or 27 Celsius, and we haven’t even <em>reached</em> the hottest part of the day.</p><p>The sun is high and bright. An eagle soars overhead. From the cool shade under the trees, cows and a couple crows watch them work.</p><p>Ian, in hard hat and T-shirt, presses down on his shovel, cutting the dirt. Behind him, another Time Team digger does the same.</p><p>Tony stands in front of them.</p><p><strong>Tony</strong>: A test pit, for those who don’t remember, is a small hole – usually 30 centimetres by 30 – dug straight down.</p><p>Ian puts the surface dirt aside. He swings back for another scoop.</p><p><strong>Tony</strong>: Once they’re about 1 metre down, they’ll assess what they’ve found and a decision will be made to either expand the hole, or move somewhere else. Considering the size of the so-called dead zone, if we find anything, it’ll be more luck than skill.</p><p>The air rings with the tang of metal on stone.</p><p>[CUT TO]</p><p>Tony’s crouches next to a test pit. There’s a nearly-empty finds tray by him.</p><p><strong>Tony</strong>: And that’s the way it’s all over this site. Without reliable geophys, all our trenches are of the whistle-and-a-prayer variety. [to digger] Anything?</p><p>The digger shakes her head.</p><p>Tony walks away from the pit still narrating.</p><p><strong>Tony</strong>: Our task is even <em>harder</em> because, whoever our skeletons were, they would have used wood instead of stone for their buildings, and possibly even stone for their tools if they couldn’t get metal. And because of this … <em>primitiveness</em>, we’re looking for many of the same signs we'd look for in a Saxon or pre-Roman site: disturbances in the soil that have grown over, but still left their imprint; pottery sherds and worked stone.</p><p>Tony stops.</p><p><strong>Tony</strong>: And something else they may have left behind – post holes.</p><p>He walks out of frame.</p><p>[CUT TO]</p><p>Tony steps next to Carenza’s trench, which is long, narrow and fairly shallow all the way along. Carenza and a couple of diggers are working. They toss dirt into sieves manned by Missouri archaeology students, who sort through it for finds.</p><p>Close up of Carenza picking at areas of darker dirt in the dense soil.</p><p><strong>Tony</strong>: So where are they Carenza?</p><p><strong>Carenza</strong>: They’re right here!</p><p>The image is of the full section of trench. Small, brightly coloured squares of ribbon have been pinned to the dirt.</p><p><strong>Carenza</strong>: [voice over] You can see there’s a line of them running east and west.</p><p><strong>Tony</strong>: Oh, yeah! I see them now!</p><p>The image freezes, and the postholes are graphically darkened. Once the image clears, it’s easier to see that the old post holes have fewer stones than the undisturbed natural.</p><p><strong>Tony</strong>: [voice over] Are they for a house?</p><p><strong>Carenza</strong>: Well, that’s the question, isn’t it. We’re going to extend the trench this way – (waving a hand cross-wise to the trench) – to see if we can find parallel lines of holes. If we find any, the width between the two lines will indicate the size of structure.</p><p><strong>Tony</strong>: So we’ll know if it was a house.</p><p><strong>Carenza</strong>: Well… We’ll know it was a structure. We’d need to find household items to support it being a house.</p><p><strong>Tony</strong>: Like cooking pots?</p><p><strong>Carenza</strong>: Those would be lovely, but I’d be happy with a piece of pottery or some animal bones with butchery marks.</p><p>The image cuts to one of the diggers picking up and looking at what looks like a rock. He flips it over a couple times before discarding it.</p><p><strong>Carenza</strong>: [voice over] One of the problems we’re having with this trench, and the others, is the lack of dating evidence. These holes could be 50 years old or 1,500.</p><p><strong>Tony</strong>: You need to find a tip.</p><p><strong>Carenza</strong>: Exactly!</p><p><strong>Tony</strong>: (turning away from Carenza’s trench) Trench 2 might be empty of finds, but Phil’s having the opposite problem.</p><p>Tony walks off frame. The camera lingers on Carenza as she bends back down to dig at the post holes.</p><p>[CUT TO]</p><p>Trench 1 now has a narrow trench dug out of the side of the slope. It is half as wide as the original trench, but it has the most people in it. Phil digs with a dental pick, scraping dirt off what looks like a random stone. Once he has it out of the ground, he uses his fingernail to remove more dirt.</p><p>Mick stands at the side of the trench, large camera around his neck and glasses on his head, examining something in his hand. Tony walks up to the trench near Mick.</p><p><strong>Tony</strong>: Phil! I hear you’ve got finds.</p><p>Phil gets to his feet.</p><p><strong>Phil</strong>: ‘Ave I got finds? Look a’ what Mick’s got.</p><p>Close up of a triangular stone, the size of Mick’s thumb.</p><p><strong>Phil:</strong> An’ there’s more. (handing Tony another piece)</p><p>Close up of a wide, sharpened stone that nearly covers Tony’s palm.</p><p><strong>Tony:</strong> [voice over] What is it?</p><p><strong>Phil</strong>: [voice over] Flint, o’course. Knife blades, if I’m not mistaken.</p><p><strong>Tony:</strong> You? Mistaken about flint?</p><p><strong>Phil:</strong> (smiling) Oh, aye, <em>normally</em> that’s true, but they developed different styles of shaping ‘ere. I researched it, so I’m fairly confident it’s a Dalton point, but I dunno… I’m going to have the local expert confirm it.</p><p>Close up of the flint point in Tony’s palm. The image freezes and the shape is outlined in yellow.</p><p><strong>Tony:</strong> [off screen] What date are you thinking?</p><p><strong>Phil:</strong> [off screen] If it <em>iz</em> a Dalton… 7,000 BC?</p><p><strong>Tony:</strong> <em>Seriously</em>? Good Lord! And it was just here. This is the expanded section, right?</p><p><strong>Phil:</strong> Yup. It’s been a marvel! But puzzlin’ too. Look at these.</p><p>Phil hands a filled finds tray to Tony. A close up shows dozens of carefully labelled bags.</p><p><strong>Tony:</strong> [voice over] That’s a lot of flint.</p><p><strong>Phil</strong>: <em>Exactly</em>. Tha’s a lot of work to just leave behind. So <em>why</em> wuz it left?</p><p>Phil takes one of the bags out of the tray and shows the point to Tony.</p><p><strong>Phil</strong>: Look at the pattern of the shapin’ – ‘ow they flaked this off the main stone. <em>To me</em>, the proportions are wrong…</p><p>Close up of the point as Phil runs his finger up the left side then down the right.</p><p><strong>Phil</strong>: [off screen] …looks thinner on this side than it should be.</p><p><strong>Tony</strong>: [off screen] Maybe it was damaged? During a hunt or something.</p><p><strong>Phil</strong>: What? All of ‘them?</p><p>Longer shot of the three of them as Phil waves his hand over the trays filled with flint points.</p><p><strong>Phil</strong>: I don’ think so. I’m thinkin’ these are botched jobs,</p><p><strong>Mick</strong>: But then the question again is why are there so many?</p><p><strong>Phil</strong>: <em>Exactly. </em>Why were they worked ‘ere? What’s special about it? There’s somethin’ else goin’ on, an’ I need to find out what it iz.</p><p><strong>Tony</strong>: So was this a work camp or an actual settlement?</p><p><strong>Mick:</strong> Not of Europeans, certainly, but from the look of Phil’s finds, the Native American tribes used and reused this place century after century.</p><p><strong>Tony:</strong> For 9,000 years?</p><p>Both Mick and Phil shrug. Tony rolls his eyes. Tony hands the tray back to Phil who puts his bag carefully back in with the rest.</p><p><strong>Tony</strong>: 9,000 years. My word…. (holding up the Dalton point so the sun makes the thinner parts glow) If that’s not the oldest man-made thing we’ve ever found, then it’s got to be pretty close.</p><p>
  <strong>[Logo and Drum Break]</strong>
</p><p>A red grid frame covers part of the Trench 1 extension. Phil is drawing the location of his finds, while another digger works in the original trench.</p><p><strong>Tony:</strong> [voice over] I can now tell you that Phil’s assessment was confirmed by the Missouri team’s flint expert, who came up just after we shot that piece. Dr Tomas Arreola Garcia says the Dalton <em>points</em> – Phil found two more – are all from around 6500 BC. The rest they found – over <em>thirty</em> – date from the later Woodland Period.</p><p>Tony stands over a table in the finds tent. Squares have been marked out in tape, and dates ranges are clearly visible.</p><p><strong>Tony</strong>: That’s still not recent, though. The Woodland Period covers everything from 1000 BC to 1000 AD.</p><p>Tony waves his hand over the line of sorted flint points.</p><p><strong>Tony</strong>: So these could all be 3,000 years old. I’ve also been told that this number of finds is actually <em>small</em> for Missouri. Apparently, farmers have filled <em>buckets</em> with flint points that they’ve just grabbed from the surface as they tilled it. <em>Buckets</em> full!</p><p><strong>Tony</strong>: Impressive, maybe. But with no context, they’re of absolutely no use to archaeology at all.</p><p>[CUT TO]</p><p>Various shots of the Time Team hard at work in the various trenches – they dig, they look at what they found and decide if it’s worth keeping. John Gater and his geophys crew are still walking over the mound – sideways now, rather than up. It’s still steep and one operator slips a little. Mick takes pictures of everything. Carenza draws the post holes in a sketch book.</p><p><strong>Tony</strong>: [voice over] Over lunch, Mick and Carenza decided to close down Trench 2. Despite expanding it, Carenza only found the one row of post holes. Without dating evidence, they could be 30 years old – or 13,000. She’ll record what they <em>did</em> find, but that’s the end of it.</p><p>Phil’s crouching, a leather sheet over his thigh. He’s hold the raw flint in his left hand and hits it with the stone in his right. He lets the flakes drip through his fingers as he works. Several diggers – both <em>Time Team</em> and American – watch him. Standing close is Dr Tomas Arreola Garcia. Dr Garcia is maybe in his 40s and appears to be of Latino descent. He wears a hat to rival Phil’s.</p><p><strong>Tony</strong>: [voice over] Phil’s taken a break from digging flint to try his hand at knapping it. Unusually, <em>he’s</em> not the expert here. Instead, he’s coached by Dr Tomas Garcia, who’s been working with the local stone for over 30 years.</p><p><strong>Phil</strong>: Oo’ee, this is ‘ard stuff.</p><p><strong>Tom Arreola Garcia</strong>: Mozarkite. [banner: Tomas Arreola Garcia, Stone Specialist, Missouri Archaeological Society] Somma da hardest flint inda world. But once you get an edge on it –</p><p><strong>Phil</strong>: It’ll last!</p><p><strong>Tom</strong>: Oh yah. It is Missouri’s state stone.</p><p><strong>Phil</strong>: (looking up at Dr Garcia) No kiddin’?</p><p><strong>Tom</strong>: No, no kidding. It is found all over the state, in a lotta different colours.</p><p><strong>Phil</strong>: It’s great stuff!</p><p>A large piece flakes off. Phil turns the stone and works on the other edge. The shot backs out to show the group watching Phil work. The sound of stone striking stone is clear.</p><p>Back to a close shot of Phil working the stone. The edge is much finer.</p><p><strong>Phil</strong>: There we are. Take a look at tha’.</p><p>He hands it to Dr Garcia, and the image moves to a close up of the orange-grey stone. Dr Garcia has a second point in his hand, but white with age. He places the two points side-by-side, turning them to compare size and shape.</p><p><strong>Phil</strong>: [off screen] So ‘ow’s that, then?</p><p><strong>Tom</strong>: [off screen] Muy bien. If I were fromma thousand year ago, I would feel comfortable using this onna hunt.</p><p>Tom returns the point to Phil. Phil blushes, ducking his head to hide his smile.</p><p><strong>Phil</strong>: Now tha’ I know ‘ow this flint handles, I could do a better job.</p><p><strong>Tom</strong>: No, no. You did good enough. Didn’t take you long, neither.</p><p><strong>Phil</strong>: It were lovely to work with.</p><p>Phil holds it up for the camera.</p><p><strong>Phil</strong>: [voice over] and as pretty as anythin’ back in Merry Olde England.</p><p>The sun behind it makes it glow.</p><p>[CUT TO]</p><p>The sun shines through a leafy tree. Then the camera dips, and Tony walks down the slope towards the camera.</p><p>As Tony walks downhill the camera circles from being in front of him to behind, so the background shifts from the Time Team’s trenches to the American trench where the skeletons were found.</p><p><strong>Tony</strong>: Now, while our team is beavering away up there, Greg's team from the Missouri Archaeological Society has been working hard down here. As we found out, they've found evidence of <em>thirteen</em> separate bodies.</p><p>[CUT TO]</p><p>The Missouri team wears T-shirts under yellow vests, and ball caps – similar, but not the same as the diggers from the Time Team. There are several scraping or sweeping dirt off what looks like a stone floor. Near the side of the trench, two teams of two students each carefully sift the spoil heaps.</p><p><strong>Tony:</strong> [voice over] Because of what happened before – the theft and vandalism – all the newer finds are being shipped off-site. This means half the crew is off-site as well, doing the conservation work.</p><p>Tony enters the frame.</p><p><strong>Tony</strong>: However, not all the experts have left. The forensic pathologist – what we’d call an osteopaleontologist – is still here. Close to the source, as it were.</p><p>Tony walks up to stand beside the pit close to Dr Germaine.</p><p><strong>Tony:</strong> Greg! You said you’d show me the bones?</p><p>Greg looks up.</p><p><strong>Greg</strong>: (frowning) What? Oh, yes. I did do that. Um… Very well. Hang on.</p><p>[CUT TO]</p><p>Tony and Greg walk towards the large, beige tent that is set on the other side of the dirt track. As they approach the tent, it’s obvious where tears in the canvas have been repaired with duct tape.</p><p><strong>Greg</strong>: Lisa Martineau is our expert. One of the best in the state.</p><p><strong>Tony:</strong> How do you know that each body is separate?</p><p>In the background, a large, black pick-up truck drives past on the track. It's very loud, so Dr Germaine waits before responding.</p><p><strong>Greg:</strong> First off, the remains were separated from each other. We didn’t find one instance where the skeletons overlapped.</p><p><strong>Tony</strong>: So not a mass grave, then.</p><p><strong>Greg</strong>: No, no. No one slung these bodies into a pit.</p><p>They enter, and the image darkens then lightens again as the camera adjusts. Several large, plastic tubs sit on folding tables. Two people wearing forensic coveralls, caps and gloves, work in the tent. One white-clad young man takes pictures of skeleton with a large camera. A second, heavily bearded man, in a turban instead of a cap, cleans bones with a toothbrush.</p><p><strong>Tony:</strong> And that supports the theory that they were European, and not, say, African slaves or Native Americans.</p><p><strong>Greg</strong>: That. And the buttons and buckles.</p><p><strong>Lisa Martineau</strong>: [off screen] Don’t forget the knife.</p><p>Dr Martineau enters frame. She wears forensic overalls, gloves and cap. She is an older, mixed race woman, but her face is only lightly lined, so probably in her 40s.</p><p><strong>Tony</strong>: What knife?</p><p>Dr Martineau waits for Dr Germaine to answer. She removes the gloves and cap. There is a lot of grey – and one dramatic white streak – in her tightly curled hair.</p><p><strong>Greg</strong>: Near one of the bodies –</p><p><strong>Lisa</strong>: The one with the stag antlers.</p><p>Dr Germaine freezes. Tony looks stunned.</p><p><strong>Tony</strong>: <em>Stag</em> antlers?</p><p><strong>Greg</strong>: Yes. A headdress. (taking an audible breath) We found a knife near the body that had worn it.</p><p><strong>Lisa</strong>: it was a very interesting knife, I thought.</p><p><strong>Tony</strong>: Where is it now?</p><p><strong>Greg</strong>: It went missing during the vandal’s attack. They must’ve took it.</p><p><strong>Lisa</strong>: We have pictures, but that doesn’t replace having the actual item.</p><p><strong>Tony</strong>: Can we see them?</p><p>A young American digger comes up to the group. The yellow safety vest is bright in the tent.</p><p><strong>Young American digger</strong>: Dr Germaine? The man from the UHBCC’s here.</p><p><strong>Greg:</strong> Already? What's he doing? Never mind. I'll come. (turning to Tony and Dr Martineau) I'm sorry, I must go.</p><p><strong>Tony:</strong> What's going on?</p><p><strong>Greg:</strong> I'll explain later. Enjoy Lisa’s theories.</p><p>Dr Germaine leaves with the unidentified digger.</p><p><strong>Tony:</strong> What’s that about? What’s the UHB… whatever?</p><p><strong>Lisa:</strong> The Unmarked Human Burials Consultation Committee. It oversees the reburial of human remains in cases like this one. Most of the unmarked grave sites we find are of Native or African Americans, killed through racist, expansionist policies supported by the governments of the time. The Committee makes sure the remains are handled respectfully by consulting with surviving members of those communities.</p><p><strong>Tony:</strong> Well, er… That’s a good idea, I suppose.</p><p><strong>Lisa:</strong> It’s better than feeding them to your dogs. Which I’ve also found evidence of.</p><p>Again, Tony is speechless. Dr Martineau seems pleased with the effect.</p><p><strong>Tony:</strong> Is it because of the ritual aspect that you’ve decide the remains are European? Are these them?</p><p>Tony takes a few quick steps to the first worktable which holds a couple of large, shallow trays. Each tray contains the parts for one skeleton laid on a white cloth. Next to the tray closest to Tony, a radius and an ulna have been placed on a mat next to a ruler.</p><p><strong>Tony</strong>: Which one was found first?</p><p><strong>Lisa</strong>: This one. (pointing to the nearest tray) Which is part of the reason it’s in worse shape than the others. The backhoe blade cut through her legs.</p><p><strong>Tony:</strong> Do you need the legs to tell the race?</p><p><strong>Lisa:</strong> We determine ancestry, not race. “Race” is too political, and tends to side-track discussions.</p><p><strong>Tony</strong>: (nodding) I can understand that. So how do you determine someone’s ancestry from bare bones?</p><p><strong>Lisa:</strong> Generally, through the skull. Though it’s not <em>proof</em>, just a collection of indicators.</p><p>Dr Germaine takes a new pair of latex gloves from a box, and pulls them on.</p><p><strong>Lisa</strong>: There are four broad anthropological classifications of homo sapien bones, and when I say “broad” I mean <em>very broad.</em> The smallest, most specific group is Australoid, which are the indigenous peoples of Oceania –</p><p><strong>Tony</strong>: That’s a lot of territory.</p><p><strong>Lisa</strong>: But not much habitable land, so fewer people overall. Caucasoid includes the indigenous peoples of Europe, North Africa, the Middle East, the Indian sub-continent and western Russia – generally, any group from west of the Ural Mountains and north of the Sahara.</p><p><strong>Tony:</strong> That’s a lot of people.</p><p><strong>Lisa:</strong> It is. Negroid describes all the people in and from sub-Saharan Africa, and many of their mixed-race descendants. The final classification, Mongoloid, includes people from eastern Russia, Asia, and all the indigenous peoples of North and South America.</p><p><strong>Tony:</strong> That’s very broad.</p><p><strong>Lisa:</strong> (smiling slightly) There are also extinct species or subspecies of archaic humans, but those classifications aren’t an issue here.</p><p><strong>Tony:</strong> [to camera] Small mercies. [to Dr Martineau] So, I know how to tell if a skeleton is male or female. I can even tell you where to look for signs of age, but I didn’t know you could tell ancestry. How do you do it?</p><p>Dr Martineau picks up the skull.</p><p><strong>Lisa:</strong> It’s really only in the skull that the indicators are easily detected. Luckily, all the skulls except one are almost completely intact.</p><p><strong>Tony</strong>: I’m afraid to ask, but what happened to that last one?</p><p><strong>Lisa<em>:</em></strong> It’s in pieces – absolutely shattered. The stag antler headpiece was intact though.</p><p>Tony gapes, but Dr Martineau ignores him. She lifts up the skull and points at the eye sockets.</p><p><strong>Lisa:</strong> Indicators of possible ancestry include the shape of the eye socket and the height of the bridge of the nose.</p><p>Her finger circles the eye sockets</p><p><strong>Lisa:</strong> [voice over] Caucasoid sockets are generally flat along the top of the socket, and droopy on the bottom. Almost like aviator sunglasses.</p><p><strong>Tony</strong>: Like Tom Cruise in <em>Top Gun</em>.</p><p><strong>Lisa:</strong> I suppose. [voice over] The bridge often protrudes significantly.</p><p>Close up as her finger waves over the bridge. And then moves top-to-bottom along the nose. Her fingers are loosely pinched.</p><p><strong>Lisa</strong>: [voice over] Also, Caucasoid skulls usually have nasal openings that are narrow and vertical.</p><p>Her finger shifts back to the outside of the eye sockets.</p><p><strong>Lisa</strong>: [voice over] Negroid skulls generally have wide eye sockets and broad nasal openings.</p><p><strong>Tony:</strong> So, this wasn’t a black person</p><p><strong>Lisa:</strong> It’s highly unlikely this person was from sub-Saharan Africa, which is where most of America’s slaves were kidnapped from.</p><p><strong>Tony:</strong> Uh...</p><p><strong>Lisa</strong>: Looking at the same areas, Mongoloid skulls...</p><p><strong>Tony:</strong> Mongoloid meaning Native Americans.</p><p><strong>Lisa</strong>: In this case, probably. Their skulls are usually are wider between the eye sockets, with virtually no bridge.</p><p>This time her finger points out the bump of bone between the sockets, before tilting the skull to show the cheekbone.</p><p><strong>Lisa:</strong> [voice over] Generally, they have wider cheekbones than either Caucasoids or Negroids.</p><p><strong>Tony:</strong> So, this person wasn’t Native American, either.</p><p><strong>Lisa</strong>: Unlikely. When we examined the other intact skulls, we found the same indicators.</p><p>They move to a second tray, and Dr Martineau picks up the skull. She again indicates the area around and between the eye sockets, and nasal opening.</p><p><strong>Lisa</strong>: [voice over] You can see this one also lacks any of the characteristics of either Native American or sub-Saharan Africa ancestry.</p><p>She carefully turns the skull on its side.</p><p><strong>Lisa:</strong> There are also indicators in the teeth and in the bone of the palette.</p><p>Close up of the upper jaw and palette.</p><p><strong>Lisa</strong>: [voice over] Bone patterns in the palette, and the shape of the teeth are often distinctive between classifications. Each of our surviving skulls match what is most commonly found in Caucasoids.</p><p><strong>Tony:</strong> So European of some kind.</p><p><strong>Lisa:</strong> (shaking her head) Again, Caucasoid covers thousands of square miles and billions of people. It’s the other finds that indicate these people were from Europe, <em>not</em> their bones.</p><p><strong>Tony</strong>: Right. The buttons and so on. No way to tell if all the people are related, I suppose.</p><p><strong>Lisa:</strong> We’ve sent teeth to the lab for DNA testing, but those results will take weeks.</p><p><strong>Tony</strong>: Nothing in the bones that can tell us?</p><p><strong>Lisa</strong>: Sometimes there are indicators of relationships – height or abnormal bone structures – but we’ve found nothing indicative of it with these remains.</p><p>Tony points at the ribs of the skeleton.</p><p><strong>Tony:</strong> What’s going on here? Why is it yellow? What does that indicate?</p><p>Dr Martineau carefully places the skull down.</p><p><strong>Lisa</strong>: Nothing, really. It's sulphur residue - probably from the soil.</p><p><strong>Tony</strong>: Oh. I thought maybe it was from the damage, because it looks like this person was crushed.</p><p>Shot of the ribcage. The yellow colour isn't visible in the dim light, but the damage is obvious. Dr Martineau's gloved finger hovers over the remains.</p><p><strong>Lisa:</strong> [voice over] We’re not exactly sure what happened, but most of the remains have similar torso damage.</p><p><strong>Tony:</strong> Did the building fall on them? Is that why they were all found together?</p><p><strong>Lisa:</strong> I’m told they didn’t find rubble with the bodies, so nothing supports that theory. And…</p><p><strong>Tony:</strong> And?</p><p>Dr Martineau picks up a piece of rib bone. She tips the broken end toward Tony.</p><p><strong>Lisa:</strong> [voice over] This fracturing pattern shows that the bone exploded <em>outward</em>, rather than being crushed inward.</p><p><strong>Tony:</strong> Outward? Like… (making an exploding motion) <em>Aliens</em>, or something.</p><p><strong>Lisa:</strong> I doubt it was a movie monster, but yes. It appears that something forced several of the ribs outward from the lungs, cracking or outright breaking some of them. This pattern is seen on all but one of the remains, and I have no idea what could’ve caused that.</p><p><strong>Tony:</strong> [to camera] Well, that’s not creepy at all.</p><p><strong>Lisa:</strong> Even more baffling is the skull of the fourth body they found.</p><p>Tony and Dr Martineau shift toward the tray at the end of the end.</p><p><strong>Tony:</strong> That’s right. You said it was in pieces. Don’t tell me his head exploded?</p><p><strong>Lisa:</strong> That's … not actually contradicted by the state of the bone fragments.</p><p>Inside the tray, the skeleton is only half assembled, but all of the torso and spine is intact. In place of a skull, there are pieces in a loose cluster.</p><p><strong>Lisa:</strong> Most of these fragments are too small to reveal much. However, once we stop finding new bodies, we’ll have time to reassemble the skull. Then the cause of the damage might be more evident.</p><p><strong>Tony:</strong> You sound quite excited about it.</p><p><strong>Lisa:</strong> Oh, I am. I love mysteries. It’s why I became a forensic anthropologist. Another interesting fact about these bodies is that they are essentially split between sexes: seven male, six female. This one is a male.</p><p>There are voices coming from the front of the tent. The light changes as someone enters.</p><p>Dr Germaine enters the frame. There is a second man with him (later identified as Eduardo Pelletier). Mr Pelletier wears sturdy denim work clothes. He appears to be quite a bit taller than Dr Germaine, but he stands to the side, out of camera range.</p><p><strong>Greg</strong>: We’re back. I hope you learned all you wanted to, Tony.</p><p><strong>Eduardo Pelletier</strong>: [off screen] Don’t point that thing at me.</p><p><strong>Lisa</strong>: I was just about to show him pictures of the antler headpiece. [to Tony] It was also taken during the incident.</p><p><strong>Pelletier:</strong> [off screen] There were antlers found?</p><p><strong>Lisa:</strong> The fourth body was found with a headpiece made of antlers, and the others all had bear claws near their hands.</p><p><strong>Pelletier:</strong> [off screen] Like they were wearing gloves?</p><p><strong>Lisa</strong>: Small scraps of leather were found, but they were too small to determine their purpose.</p><p><strong>Pelletier:</strong> [off screen] Carved?</p><p><strong>Greg:</strong> That's not –</p><p><strong>Lisa:</strong> I’m not the conservator, but I believe some of them showed signs of carving.</p><p><strong>Pelletier:</strong> [off screen] I’d like to see them</p><p><strong>Greg:</strong> The markings are <em>very</em> faint. They could just as easily be scratches from how they were removed from the animals.</p><p><strong>Pelletier:</strong> [off screen] I’d still like to see them. And the bodies were found in a circle?</p><p><strong>Greg:</strong> They were found in a group. Can’t really call it a circle.</p><p><strong>Pelletier:</strong> [off screen] But not buried. Just killed and left.</p><p><strong>Greg</strong>: Not <em>killed</em> …</p><p><strong>Lisa</strong>: The bodies weren’t arranged, and from what I understand, nothing we’d consider burial goods were found. Isn’t that right, Dr Germaine?</p><p><strong>Greg</strong>: (slowly)  Yes, she’s right.</p><p><strong>Pelletier</strong>: [off screen] And they all died at once?</p><p>Again, the camera tries to include Mr Pelletier in the frame. He moves so his back is to it.</p><p><strong>Lisa:</strong> That’s impossible to say from the bones.</p><p><strong>Tony:</strong> [to Mr Pelletier] So, you’re thinking ritual, then.</p><p>Mr Pelletier turns partially towards Tony, exposing just his lower jaw to the camera. He’s unshaven and the hair is dark. Nothing else can be determined.</p><p><strong>Pelletier:</strong> What do <em>you</em> think?</p><p><strong>Tony:</strong> What kind of ritual calls for stag horns and bear’s claws, and leaves everyone dead?</p><p><strong>Pelletier:</strong> Nothing good.</p><p>Mr Pelletier turns away from Tony and Lisa. He brings his arm up to Dr Germaine’s shoulders and steers him away from them and the camera.</p><p><strong>Pelletier:</strong> [off screen] Show me your other finds, so I can … essment and get out … hair.</p><p><strong>Tony:</strong> (facing the camera) Well that was all mysterious and gloomy. Exploding chests and crowns made with antlers? But I have to admit, out of all the times I’ve heard archaeologist yell “ritual!, ritual!”, I think this time they may have gotten it right.</p><p>[CUT TO]</p><p><strong>Tony</strong>: [voice over] Elsewhere, things aren’t so clear. While I was down here, Carenza was supposed to shut down Trench 2, but then…</p><p>Carenza sits next to Trench 2. A red 3x4 grid-frame is in the trench, and she draws a sketch of her post holes. Field Archaeologist Matt Williams stands beside her.</p><p><strong>Matt Williams</strong>: Carenza? That area of dirt next to the post hole. Maybe 30 or 40 centimetres to this side of it…</p><p><strong>Carenza</strong>: Yes? (looking up from her drawing)</p><p><strong>Matt</strong>: Is it a different colour?</p><p>Carenza stands and moves to where Matt is standing.</p><p><strong>Carenza</strong>: Where?</p><p>He points. She looks, and then looks harder.</p><p><strong>Carenza</strong>: Oh! Oh, yes. I see it.</p><p>The image freezes, and the area that Matt talked about darkens so it stands out.</p><p><strong>Matt</strong>: It follows the line of post holes pretty regular.</p><p><strong>Carenza</strong>: Yes, you’re right. We’ll have to dig that out.</p><p><strong>Matt</strong>: It’s not very wide.</p><p><strong>Carenza</strong>: Doesn’t matter. It could be a run-off ditch, or it could be natural. We need to know.</p><p><strong>Matt</strong>: Okay. I’ll start digging then.</p><p>Matt steps into the trench, trowel in hand. Carenza looks down at her half-finished drawing, and then at the area they’re going to be digging up. She drops the drawing to her side with a sigh.</p><p><strong>Carenza</strong>: Now I know how Victor must feel - starting his drawings over and over again.</p><p>Matt flicks out the disturbed dirt from his shallow trench.</p><p>[CUT TO]</p><p>Tony stands next to Trench 1. The ancient mound is behind and to the left.</p><p><strong>Tony</strong>: So it’s late afternoon on Day One and Carenza’s maybe found a ditch, Phil’s finding <em>even</em> <em>more</em> flint–</p><p><strong>Phil</strong>: And other stuff!</p><p><strong>Tony</strong>: And other stuff.</p><p>He steps away from Trench 1 and the camera turns to follow.</p><p><strong>Tony</strong>: John’s team is working heroically to survey the mound – only once today so we don’t kill anyone. Everyone is busy except for me and Mick. So we’re going up there…</p><p>The camera tilts as Tony looks up. The image changes to leaves shaking in the wind and the clear blue nothingness of a summer sky.</p><p>[CUT TO]</p><p>Tony and Mick are in a helicopter above Pete Yarborough’s "back forty". The paved road curves around the hill with the mound. Fairly thick forest lines the road and separates fields one from another.</p><p>The mound, bare of large vegetation, is easily spotted.</p><p><strong>Tony</strong>: [headset] So what are you hoping to see from up here?</p><p>Looking down, the helicopter's shadow is sharp on the ground as they climb above the dig site. On the far side, the cows are light dots between the trees.</p><p><strong>Mick</strong>: [headset] You remember those crop marks we saw this morning?</p><p><strong>Tony</strong>: [headset] The ones near Phil’s trench.</p><p>From the air, it’s obvious that the mound is man-made. Geophys are walking over it with their equipment.</p><p><strong>Mick</strong>: [headset] That’s right. I want to see if there are any more. … [voice over] There’s the ones we saw from the mound…</p><p>From the air, Phil’s trench is easily visible as a gouge in the side of the hill. The shot freezes, and the crop marks from this morning are overlaid. Half of them are outside the trench; half are being dug.</p><p><strong>Tony</strong>: [headset} Is that the “dead zone”? (pointing out the open side of the helicopter) All that thin grass?</p><p>The dark brown of the test pits stand out clearly, as does the reddish-grey of the tiles in the American trench.</p><p><strong>Mick</strong>: [headset] [voice over] Yes, that’s it. Odd we didn’t see that from the top of the mound. Now, there’s Greg’s trench.</p><p>They fly close to the large, square pit. There are about six people working in and around it. The trench is fully exposed to the sun. There are no trees, and the grass is markedly thinner and greyer than in the surrounding area.</p><p><strong>Mick</strong>: [headset] [voice over] Did you know the stone used on the floor is from France? That’s why it’s that reddish colour.</p><p>They pass over the large American trench. The helicopter jumps.</p><p>The camera wobbles and Mick’s arm is seen reaching out to brace the camera operator.</p><p>The camera steadies. The American trench is now out of sight, and the camera operator retreats back into the helicopter. Instead of filming the ground, the camera now films Mick and Tony looking out the open side.</p><p><strong>Tony</strong>: [headset] French limestone?</p><p><strong>Mick</strong>: [headset] Right yes! From Paris. The archaeologist who told me about it, mentioned that it’s the same stone that was used in this famous Gallo-Roman carved column.</p><p><strong>Tony</strong>: [headset] Oh yeah?</p><p><strong>Mick</strong>: [headset] Guess who was carved on the column?</p><p><strong>Tony</strong>: [headset] Roman gods?</p><p><strong>Mick</strong>: [headset] And some Gallic ones, as well. Including, apparently, a horned god called Cernunnos.</p><p><strong>Tony</strong>: [headset] Oh <em>really</em>? You think Greg’s remains were worshippers? Way out here?</p><p><strong>Mick</strong>: [headset] Might have been.</p><p><strong>Tony</strong>: [headset] So, you’re saying that if we combine the stones with the antlers and the bear claws, and having six female and seven male…</p><p><strong>Mick</strong>: [headset] I’m comfortable with calling it a ritual.</p><p><strong>Tony</strong>: [headset] <em>Really</em>?</p><p><strong>Mick</strong>: [headset] Oh yes. I’ll even go so far as to say it was some kind of neo-Pagan ritual. I just wish I knew what it was <em>for.</em></p><p><strong>Tony</strong>: [headset] And why they seem to have died during it?</p><p><strong>Mick</strong>. [headset] Well, yes. [laughing] I’d like to know that, too.</p><p>[CUT TO]</p><p>Tony stands in a field while the helicopter takes off behind him.</p><p><strong>Tony</strong>: We didn’t see any other crop marks. We also didn’t see any other mounds, or evidence of ancient roads or other large-scale human activity. As far as we can tell, right now, the thirteen people who died here, carried nearly<em> a ton</em> of European rock over the Atlantic, hauled it across thousands of miles to the middle of the unknown – to them - wilderness, and floored a building with it. And then they died on it.</p><p>Tony leans in to the camera.</p><p><strong>Tony</strong>: I think it’s time we saw this oh-so important floor up close, don’t you?</p><p>[CUT TO]</p><p>In the Missouri trench, there are two field archaeologists clearing to the edge of the the stone tiling. One of them works on the side closest to camera, obviously waiting for her cue. Tony walks into frame.</p><p><strong>Tony</strong>: Greg isn’t here right now – probably still dealing with paperwork and officialdom. Instead, Dr Paula Kim – his second-in-command on this dig – has agreed to answer our questions.</p><p>He turns and walks toward Dr Kim. She’s a plump, middle-aged, Asian woman dressed in well-worn digging gear and a straw cowboy hat. She has a thick local accent.</p><p><strong>Tony</strong>: Paula! Mick says they used Parisian limestone for the floor! Is that true?</p><p><strong>Paula Kim:</strong> (standing up) How-do, Tony. And it’s def’nitely Lutetian limestone. [banner: Dr Paula Kim, Missouri Archaeological Society] A pa’ticular type known as <em>pierre de Saint-Leu-d'Esserent.</em></p><p><strong>Tony</strong>: Wow! That’s very specific. How do you know?</p><p>The shot changes to show the reddish-grey stone tiles being sponged clean. Where the washing is complete and still wet, the colour is quite vivid.</p><p><strong>Paula</strong>: [voice over] I recognized it from when I studied in Paris? In fact, this might be the same stone as in the Catacombs there.</p><p><strong>Tony</strong>: He told me it was used in a Roman pillar!</p><p><strong>Paula</strong>: Well, that too. [voice over] It was used in a lot of monuments and buildin’s.</p><p>One of the American diggers picks carefully around a collarbone. The skull is clearly visible.</p><p><strong>Tony</strong>: [voice over] Any idea why they would’ve hauled it all the way to Missouri?</p><p><strong>Paula</strong>: Absolutely no idea! I cain’t think anythin’d be wurth the hassle, but, like, people brought pianuhs and fancy harps from Europe, and <em>those </em>might’ve been even more work than stone slabs, so… (shrugging)</p><p><strong>Tony</strong>: No argument there. What else can you tell me about this building?</p><p>The shot changes to an overhead one, so the whole trench is on screen.</p><p><strong>Paula</strong> [voice over] Well, first off – it’s not a buildin’. There’re no walls – or foundations for walls. We think the ground was levelled then the stone tiles were just laid d’rectly on the dirt. Other than that, it’s very nearly square?  There’re seven blocks along each side. And each block is, like, two feet? So it’s fourteen by fourteen. Which Greg seems to think is significant.</p><p><strong>Tony</strong>: [voice over] It looks like you’ve got most of it cleared off.</p><p><strong>Paula</strong>: [voice over] We found most the edges. Now we’re, like, workin’ out to the corners? Makin’ sure we’ve found everythin’.</p><p><strong>Tony</strong>: [voice over] So what else can you tell me about it?</p><p><strong>Paula:</strong> We-ell… The most int’restin’ thing ‘bout it is that there’s a gap in the centre? Not planned, I don’t think, ‘cuz the stone around it is all cracked and chipped. It’s like it just exploded outward.</p><p><strong>Tony</strong>: Really? Can I…?</p><p>Tony steps toward the trench even as he asks permission.</p><p><strong>Paula</strong>: Sure. Come on in!</p><p>Tony steps in and they move to the middle. They crouch over the broken stone. He traces the cracks with his fingers. There are slight ripples, as if the fragments were pushed up against one another. There are bright yellow spots along some of the edges.</p><p><strong>Tony</strong>: [voice over] What on earth caused this?</p><p><strong>Paula</strong>: [voice over] Again, no ideah. Greg said he was gonna talk to a geologist? See how much force it’d take to do this. Because, like, limestone ain’t exactly fragile.</p><p>They stand up. Tony rubs his hands together to shake off the residue.</p><p><strong>Tony</strong>: So where were the bodies found in relation to this?</p><p>Dr Kim’s gesture includes the whole site.</p><p><strong>Paula</strong>: All around, but like, mostly towards the edges? There were a couple found right on the edge of the tiles – all crumpled down on themselves. As if they’d died sittin’ up? Those were fun ones to untangle. The only body within a yard of the centre point was the one we think was the leader.</p><p><strong>Tony</strong>: The one with the antlers?</p><p><strong>Paula</strong>: Yeah. The Headman we’re callin’ ‘im, because... Well, Horny Man ain’t polite.</p><p>Tony laughs abruptly. Dr Kim smiles before continuing.</p><p><strong>Paula</strong>: He was found ‘bout here. (pointing down) See those, like, dark spots on the stone?</p><p>Close of up dark brown stains on the reddish grey stones.</p><p><strong>Tony</strong>: [voice over] Oh yes. What are they?</p><p><strong>Paula</strong>: Near as we cain figure - without scraping some up for a lab – it’s blood. Soaked right into the stone.</p><p>Tony stares at Paula. She shrugs apologetically. He turns to the camera.</p><p><strong>Tony</strong>: This dig just keeps getting more and more gruesome. I can’t wait to see what we find tomorrow!</p><p>[CUT TO]</p><p>Henry takes a final GPS measurement at the very top of the mound, backed by the setting sun.</p><p>At the base, the geophys team steps off it. The one holding the probes stands still until the other nods that the reading is complete. Then she drops to sit cross-legged, before toppling over onto her back (equipment held carefully up off the ground). John walks over and fans her with his clipboard.</p><p>In the distance, looking small, a white 4x4 drives off the field.</p><p>[CUT TO]</p><p>Tony is driving the 4x4.</p><p><strong>Tony</strong>: As a Briton, it can be hard to imagine just how isolated parts of America are. I know when <em>I</em> think of America, I immediately picture New York, or – as an actor – Los Angeles.</p><p>Tony parks. He exits the vehicle, and walks towards the camera.</p><p><strong>Tony:</strong> But big cities are only a small part of America. Most of the country is like this (gesturing towards the trees and rolling fields beyond the paved road). The nearest town, Granville, is nearly 45 minutes south of here, and it has a population of just 200 people. It has one hotel, and that’s been filled by the Missouri team.</p><p><strong>Tony:</strong> Pete Yarborough, the rancher whose land this is, has graciously allowed us to take over his "side pasture” – a mere 3 or so hectares – so we’ve brought in caravans.</p><p>The shot widens to show that Tony surrounded by a small village of camper vans.</p><p>Tony waves at a large caravan with door signs for male and female.</p><p><strong>Tony</strong>: This one is a bathroom, complete with showers. There are also sleeping caravans, but – since it’s the middle of a Missouri summer – many of our younger crew – British <em>and</em> American – has opted for tents. And, of course, there’s a large one for cooking and eating.</p><p>Tony rubs his hands together.</p><p><strong>Tony: </strong>Not tonight, however. Tonight, Pete is hosting a barbeque.</p><p>The shot changes to a large, rocky field, set up with trestle tables and chairs. People, dressed casually in jeans and red western shirts, are preparing and setting up food from large grills.</p><p>Pete Yarborough stands between to a huge rotisserie with a whole pig roasting on it, and long, covered smoker grill. On his barbeque, he stirs a big pot of chili. Tony jogs up to him.</p><p><strong>Tony</strong>: Pete! This is absolutely wonderful!</p><p><strong>Pete Yarborough</strong>: Welcome to Missouruh. I’m right pleased to have you all here.</p><p>Tony stands next to Pete, pointing at him.</p><p><strong>Tony</strong>: [to camera] It was Pete who called us in for this dig. [to Pete] How on earth did you hear about <em>Time Team</em>?</p><p><strong>Pete</strong>: M’sister’s in England. She made me warch yer show when I was over there fer a visit.</p><p><strong>Tony</strong>: And you liked it!</p><p><strong>Pete</strong>: Loved it. I cain’t believe what you all can dig up in yer backyards.</p><p><strong>Tony</strong>: It’s wonderful to hear that. Amazing! [to camera] To celebrate, Pete’s putting on what he says is a typical Missourian barbeque. [to Pete] Is that true?</p><p><strong>Pete:</strong> We-ell, I don’ know if the rest of the state’d agree, but this is how muh parents did it, and they’re Missourian back seven generations.</p><p><strong>Tony:</strong> That’s good enough for me. So, what have you got for us?</p><p>They talk over a series of shots. In the smoker grill, ribs and un-husked corn are turned. Someone pours basting sauce over the pig on the rotisserie spit. People stir big pots of soup and sauces with ladles, taking a spoonful for a taste test. Huge tubs of salads – potato, pasta, and green – are placed on a trestle table.</p><p><strong>Pete:</strong> [voice over] We got rib barbeque, done Sain’ Louis-style. A rotisseried hog with muh grandmomma’s basting sauce. There’ll be gravy and biscuits o’course. Baked beans, collard greens, and corn growed on muh farm and grilled right on the cob.</p><p><strong>Tony:</strong> Sounds like a feast!</p><p><strong>Pete</strong>: Gotta give you all a good taste of Missouruh. You all came a long ways.</p><p><strong>Tony:</strong> Our pleasure, honestly. It must have been quite a shock finding those skeletons.</p><p><strong>Pete:</strong> I ain’t never seen anythin’ like it. I bourght this property five years ago, and nonnuh the records said anythin’ ‘bout dead bodies.</p><p><strong>Tony:</strong> But people have lived here for a long time – <em>13,000 years</em></p><p><strong>Pete:</strong> (shaking his head) People don’ live as close here as they do in England – now or in the past – so we all don’ expect to find anythin’ but arruhheads when we dig our fields. An’ I gotta say, I’m just grateful that the bodies turned out to be real old. I’ve warched too many serial killer movies, and if that body had been less than 50 years old … Well, it woulda been real disturbin’, I don’ mind sayin’.</p><p><strong>Tony:</strong> Yeah, that would’ve been awful. But it wasn’t the case, and now we’re here, ready to eat all this lovely food!</p><p><strong>Pete:</strong> I hope you all enjoy it.</p><p><strong>Tony:</strong> I know we will.</p><p>[CUT TO]</p><p>Mick and Lisa stand in line at the buffet table, talking. Phil Harding asks questions of the servers. Carenza, Phil, and Dr Germaine sit next to each other at one of the tables. Tony joins them. He brings Mr Yarborough with him.</p><p><strong>Tony:</strong> [voice over] And we definitely did. The food was fantastic. Although the company occasionally left something to be desired.</p><p><strong>Greg</strong>: You can’t just say that it’s ritual. We don’t know enough yet.</p><p><strong>Phil</strong>: I agree.</p><p><strong>Carenza</strong>: But all the signs are there: the special area, the specialized goods…</p><p>Mick and Dr Martineau set their plates down and join them.</p><p><strong>Phil:</strong> But they were <em>European,</em> meanin’ <em>Christian</em> –</p><p><strong>Carenza</strong>: Not necessarily. Paganism was on the rise in the late 1700s, as people became interested in their Norse or Celtic roots.</p><p><strong>Tony:</strong> I thought we’d agreed they were neo-Pagans, who came to America for religious freedom?</p><p><strong>Lisa</strong>: Except that’s not what America was known for in the 1600 or 1700s. The exact opposite, in fact. The Puritans were <em>not</em> tolerant.</p><p><strong>Carenza:</strong> Paganism <em>would</em> explain why they were out here in what was dangerous wilderness, far from any other white settlements.</p><p><strong>Tony:</strong> I suppose that’s why Mr Pelletier was sent. It is his job to figure it out, after all.</p><p><strong>Mick</strong>: Where was he from again? I don’t think I caught it correctly.</p><p><strong>Greg:</strong> The Unmarked Human Burials Consultation Committee. ... Let me explain.</p><p><strong>Tony:</strong> Yes, please.</p><p><strong>Greg:</strong> Graveyards weren’t a thing here until the Europeans came</p><p><strong>Pete:</strong> But the mounds...</p><p><strong>Greg:</strong> We don't actually know that they <em>are</em> burial mounds – far too few of them have been properly excavated. Anyway, we have thousands of years of human occupation, and the last three hundred or so have been especially brutal for certain segments of the population.</p><p><strong>Mick:</strong> Slavery.</p><p><strong>Lisa:</strong> And Indigenous peoples. There are no reservations in Missouri – all the tribes were driven out.</p><p><strong>Greg:</strong> True, true. So, the Committee was set up to advise archaeologists on the best way to treat unmarked human remains, in a culturally appropriate manner.</p><p><strong>Phil:</strong> Really?</p><p><strong>Mick:</strong> That’s very interesting.</p><p><strong>Greg:</strong> It adds a lot of extra red tape and work to any dig where remains are found.</p><p><strong>Lisa:</strong> On the other hand, my great-grandparents were slaves, and two of my great-uncles were lynched in the ‘30s, so mandatory sensitivity isn't unwarranted.</p><p><strong>Tony:</strong> [voice over] And how can you argue with that.</p><p>[CUT TO]</p><p>The caravan village is lit by crudely strung work lights – strong bulbs with wide, aluminium covers. Their light glows brighter as the sun goes down.</p><p>The archaeologists sit around the tables. There are groups laughing, and some groups of intense discussion. Carenza pulls on a jacket – a slice of pie sits in front of her.</p><p>There’s a small bonfire and the younger American and British archaeologists gather around it. A log is added, and sparks float up into the twilight sky. Behind them, the dining table is abandoned. Pete’s people clean the dishes and pack up the leftover foods.</p><p>One of the geophys team crawls into her tent. On the sides of another tent, someone else turns off their light. In the caravan village, Mick closes his door after waving goodnight to Phil who climbs the steps to a camper van across the path.</p><p><strong>Tony:</strong> [voice over] Dr Martineau’s personal connection to America’s history of slavery is a stark reminder that the skeletons we examine and catalogue were once actual, <em>living </em>people. Were they a family desperately hoping for a fresh start? Or a religious community escaping the constraints of established European religions? We tried to find Mr Pelletier to talk to him about the importance of his work, but he hadn't joined us for dinner.</p><p>One of Pete’s people tosses a bucket of water on the abandoned, dying fire.</p><p>Lorries pull out onto the highway with only their head or brake lights to give them away. There are lights in several the tents as people retreat for the evening</p><p>Then even they go dark.</p><p><strong>Tony</strong>: [voice over] It had been a successful day, followed by a delicious meal, and everyone was ready for a long and rejuvenating sleep. Except that’s not what happened.</p><p>
  <strong>[Advert Break Image and Drums]</strong>
</p>
  </div><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_foot_notes"><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
          <p>This is kind of what I had in mind for their mound though maybe not quite as steep:<br/><a href="http://www.mediafire.com/view/mp2dsl5j89gavce"></a></p><p>I found this pic on the Miller County Museum website, in an article about the Mississippian and other Indigenous cultures of Missouri. http://www.millercountymuseum.org/archives/090119.html</p>
        </blockquote></div></div>
<a name="section0003"><h2>3. Part II</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff"><p>Warning for brief discussion of the skeletons found by the Missouri team, including that of small child.</p></blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>
  <strong>[Banner: Part II]</strong>
</p><p>Tony, badly lit by the crudely strung work-lights, is roughly dressed and pulling on an anorak. He stands close to the camera, so the built-in mike picks up his voice, but the general sound quality is poor, with odd scratches and 'scree' sounds.</p><p><strong>Tony:</strong> It's one in the morning, … been woken … some horrendous noises coming from … site. I’m hesitant to add to the confusion, but it could be the vandals back for another go. C’mon. Let’s go!</p><p>The hand-held camera jerks and the picture isn’t clear, but it's obvious they're running towards the Missouri Archaeological Society's finds tent.</p><p><strong>Carenza</strong>: [off screen] What … -ing on?</p><p>The camera stops, and it becomes clear that something in the tent is burning.</p><p><strong>Tony:</strong> [off screen] Fire! That’s more than a prank. Has …</p><p><strong>Carenza:</strong> [off screen] … awful! What if … -aravans?</p><p>A crowd has grown around the tent. Occasionally, everyone is dimly lit by a flash from inside. Many carry torches, but the light from them doesn’t reach anywhere close to the tent. Phil pushes through to the main Time Team members.</p><p><strong>Phil</strong>: … in blue blazes iz goin’ on?</p><p><strong>Tony</strong>: Your guess is as good as mine. Do we have fire extinguishers?</p><p>From the tent come sounds: hollow and distorted, it's probably some kind of chemical reaction because the fire changes to an acid green colour. The camera operator tries to zoom in on the tent entrance, but the camera can't adjust fast enough to the flashing light.</p><p>A sound like a deep, rumbling growl freezes everyone in place.</p><p><strong>John</strong>: [off screen] … earth is <em>that</em>?</p><p><strong>Tony:</strong> [off screen] Doesn’t sound very earthly to me.</p><p><strong>Carenza:</strong> [off screen] No … Tony, this is … odd.</p><p>The image jumps and blurs as the camera moves beyond Tony, Carenza and John, through the growing crowd. Dr Martineau and some American diggers run by with fire extinguishers. Dr Martineau is fully dressed in jeans, work boots, an oxford shirt and a thick, flannel jacket.</p><p><strong>Phil</strong>: [off screen] … one dig ‘ave so much bad luck, iz what …</p><p><strong>John</strong>: [off screen] Can’t be …. -on’t believe it.</p><p>The growl rises in volume and tone until it's like a scream. The camera operator backs away. Except for Dr Martineau, the American diggers stop where they are.]</p><p>The fire flares. The scream cuts off. The entrance to the tent puffs out and bursts open with a sound like a gasp. Then everything goes quiet, dark and still.</p><p>The numerous torches held by the group now seem to light up the area quite well. The camera swings around to catch the Team’s reactions.</p><p><strong>John</strong>: [off screen] What just happened?</p><p><strong>Tony</strong>: [off screen] That was weird. That was scarily weird.</p><p>Mr Pelletier appears next to Carenza.</p><p><strong>Pelletier</strong>: What was weird? [to camera] Don’t point that at me.</p><p>The camera swings back around to show Dr Martineau moving towards the tent. The young American diggers inch after her, clutching their fire extinguishers.</p><p><strong>Carenza</strong>: [off screen] The fire turn- …? Didn't you …?</p><p><strong>Tony</strong>: [off screen] Or <em>hear </em>it.</p><p><strong>Pelletier</strong>: [off screen] Ah, [bleeped]! … couldn’t it have been simple.</p><p>Mr Pelletier pushes through the crowd, and stops the diggers. He takes the extinguisher from one of them and sends them away. Dr Martineau doesn’t leave and Mr Pelletier doesn’t try make her.</p><p><strong>Unnamed American digger</strong>: [off screen] Are they really going in there?</p><p>Dr Martineau and Mr Pelletier enter the tent together.</p><p><strong>Tony</strong>: [off screen] They <em>are</em> going in there. I don’t think I’d be that dedicated.</p><p><strong>Unnamed American digger</strong>: [off screen] … sure he’s from the Committee?</p><p><strong>Phil</strong>: [off screen] Why else would ‘e be here?</p><p>[<strong>Logo and Drum Break]</strong></p><p>The sun pokes over the horizon.</p><p>People emerge from tents and caravans, sleepy and dragging. It may be early morning, but it’s already warm enough for most to be in shorts with just light anoraks. They line up at the food truck, before heading to the dining car to eat breakfast. There are lots of yawns amongst the team.</p><p><strong>Tony</strong>: [voice over] Needless to say, after last night's excitement, none of us are feeling perky, and our breakfast conversation was almost exclusively about last night's fire.</p><p>As the diggers head up the slope to the trenches carrying their shovels and tool kits,  the Fulham County Sheriff's 4x4 is again parked near the Missouri team's finds tent. Next to it is a pick‑up truck with a Granville Volunteer Fire Brigade decal on the door panel.</p><p><strong>Tony</strong>: [voice over] From all reports – all unofficial at this point – the fire started in the bone tray of the fourth body – the one with the antler crown – and then spread to other areas. Dr Martineau and her team are assessing the damage right now.</p><p>A mother coyote and two pups run through the misty ground, under a fence and into the woods.</p><p>Tony walks across the track, through the fence and up the slope. Almost exactly the route he used yesterday.</p><p><strong>Tony</strong>: They suspect arson, of course, but if it was deliberately set, it was done badly as nothing else in the tent was damaged. Greg has called in the county sheriff and fire marshal. And then he’ll have to talk to the insurance company, <em>and</em> his supervisors at the university. It’s not going to be a fun day for him.</p><p><strong>Tony</strong>: [voice over] Strange occurrences aside, we've still got a site to dig and mysteries of our own to solve.</p><p>A photograph of the site taken from the top of the mound is displayed. The trenches are graphically inserted and brighten as he speaks of them.</p><p><strong>Tony</strong>: [voice over] Trench 1 was placed over one of the few anomalies geophys was able to detect yesterday, and then expanded sideways over some crop marks Mick spotted from the mound. These have yielded <em>dozens</em> of flint tools that, unfortunately, date to well-before the skeletons, which are from the 18th century.</p><p><strong>Tony</strong>: [voice over] We have a couple teams digging test pits in the odd dead zone around the Missouri trench. We’re hoping for evidence that the bodies found by Pete Yarborough were either an isolated group or part of a larger community that failed. They haven’t turned up anything yet, but today could be different so we’ll keep digging them.</p><p>Tony emerges from the trees by their tent. The flaps are up, and conservators are already working. In front, a white 4x4 with the Time Team logo is parked. As usual, Mick, Phil, Carenza and John are gathered around the bonnet.</p><p><strong>Tony</strong>: Yesterday, Carenza closed Trench 2 after following a line of postholes and digging out a shallow trench, which she thinks drained runoff from a roof – so it was probably a permanent structure, but definitely <em>not</em> from the 1700s.</p><p><strong>Tony</strong>: Carenza! This dig has been incredibly frustrating for you. A whole day in your trench and essentially nothing.</p><p><strong>Carenza</strong>: I didn’t find “nothing”. I found post-holes, and a drainage ditch.</p><p><strong>Tony</strong>: But none of it’s <em>dateable</em>.</p><p><strong>Carenza</strong>: Well, yes, <em>that’s</em> true, but it all contributes to the story of this area, and one day – (shrugging) Someone else might find the rest of it.</p><p><strong>Tony</strong>: You’re a lot more accepting of disappointment than I am, I tell you.</p><p><strong>Carenza</strong>: Yes, well. I <em>am</em> an archaeologist.</p><p>Mick, Phil, and Carenza laugh.</p><p><strong>Tony</strong>: So what’s next?</p><p><strong>Mick</strong>: Well, we’re thinking Carenza will look at these anomalies, here –</p><p>Insert a shot of Mick pointing out the blobs on yesterday’s resistance survey report.</p><p><strong>Carenza</strong>: Oh, yes. I’ll have a go at those. They’re the only other result John got yesterday.</p><p><strong>John</strong>: Not for lack of trying!</p><p><strong>Carenza</strong>: No, not geophys’s fault.</p><p><strong>Mick</strong>: They’re close together so one wide trench should catch all of them, and she can see what’s there.</p><p><strong>Tony</strong>: Excellent! What else have you got planned?</p><p><strong>Mick</strong>: That kind’ve depends on the new survey.</p><p>Everyone turns to look at John Gater, who mock-flinches.</p><p><strong>Tony</strong>: No pressure!</p><p>They all laugh.</p><p><strong>John</strong>: No, none at all! Well, as you know, the magnetometer and resistance results were very poor, so we switched to radar yesterday. We haven’t done everything yet – that mound is a killer – but look…</p><p>He lays a black-and-white printout on the bonnet in front of everyone. It shows a panel of parallel lines with clusters of spikes.</p><p><strong>John</strong>: [voice over] It worked. Wherever you see these spikes it means that there’s something there and gives it’s approximate depth. As you can see, that’s a big one.</p><p>His finger circles on of the largest cluster with the densest spikes.</p><p><strong>Phil</strong>: [voice over] How far’z‘at from our current trenches?</p><p>John pulls out yesterday’s survey map, and points to one of the blankest areas.</p><p><strong>John</strong>: [voice over] About ten metres closer to the drop off and where the bodies were found.</p><p><strong>Carenza</strong>: [voice over] You mean the dead zone.</p><p><strong>John</strong>: It’s not dead now.</p><p><strong>Mick</strong>: It’s a very clear result –</p><p><strong>John</strong>: Best one we’ve had so far.</p><p><strong>Mick</strong>: Surprisingly clear.</p><p><strong>Tony</strong>: You surveyed this area yesterday. Why didn’t you pick this up then?</p><p><strong>John</strong>: We weren’t using radar yesterday.</p><p>They laugh.</p><p><strong>Mick</strong>: No, really. What would cause both the magnetometer and resistance to fail, but work with radar?</p><p><strong>John</strong>: Honestly? I have no idea. And that’s one reason why we <em>have</em> to dig. I have to know what happened here, in case it happens somewhere else.</p><p><strong>Mick</strong>: Hmm, true enough. Okay then. I’ll talk to Greg – see if he wants us to open this up.</p><p><strong>John</strong>: I’m betting the answer will be yes.</p><p><strong>Tony</strong>: (all laughing) No bet! [to Mick] So will you close down Trench 1?</p><p><strong>Phil</strong>: Not yet!</p><p><strong>Mick</strong>: I don’t think so. We still have to figure out why there’s all that broken flint in Phil’s trench.</p><p><strong>Phil</strong>: And it’s not just flint! We’re finding plenty of other things. Look a’this.</p><p>Phil lays a bag on the bonnet. It contains a broad, rectangular stone with slight indents. It’s about as big as his palm.</p><p><strong>Tony</strong>: That just looks like a rock.</p><p><strong>Phil</strong>: Well, it’s a stone tool, so yer not far wrong. Not flint, though.</p><p>Close up of the tool as he points out the features.</p><p><strong>Phil</strong>: [voice over] The ‘ole ‘ere iz man-made. They’da split one end of the ‘andle into three parts – a big centre bit and then two thinner parts on either side. Then they run the thick part through the ‘ole in the middle – here – wrap the side bits up and around, and then secure ‘em all with leather straps. You can jus’ see where the straps wore into the stone.</p><p><strong>Tony</strong>: It was an axe?</p><p><strong>Mick</strong>: (shaking his head) More likely a hammer. They’d’ve used flint for an axe.</p><p><strong>Phil</strong>: Quite right. This‘n’s well used, though. You can see the chips in the ‘ead of it.</p><p><strong>Tony</strong>: Well, maybe you can, but I’m not wearing my glasses!</p><p>They all laugh.</p><p><strong>Mick</strong>: Is that from the same time period as the flint?</p><p><strong>Phil</strong>: Not Dalton, I don’ think, but maybe Woodland? (shaking his head) I need to get Tom back ‘ere to look at it.</p><p><strong>Tony</strong>: (grabbing Phil’s arm) It’s a good find, though?</p><p><strong>Phil</strong>: Oh, aye. Very good!</p><p><strong>Tony</strong>: (turning to Mick) So we’ve got Phil’s flint trench, and we’ve got two new targets from geophys. Do we need to keep up with the test pits? Have they found anything?</p><p><strong>Mick</strong>: Not much that’s unique, but I think we’ll continue those as well. Don’t know what might turn up.</p><p><strong>Tony</strong>: (rubbing his hands together) Then let’s get started!</p><p>[CUT TO]</p><p>Long shot of Carenza and Mick walking away from the 4x4. The angle is bad, and their voices are scratchy. Obviously, they were recorded unknowingly.]</p><p><strong>Carenza</strong>: [voice over] Are we not going to talk about what happened last night?</p><p><strong>Mick</strong>: [voice over] What would we say?</p><p><strong>Carenza</strong>: [voice over] Mr Pelletier is saying they’ll probably blame a faulty electrical cord.</p><p><strong>Mick</strong>: [voice over] Well –</p><p><strong>Carenza</strong>: [voice over] Faulty wiring doesn’t burn green or target only certain items in a large, chemical rich area.</p><p><strong>Mick</strong>: [voice over] No. But… It’s not something we need to worry about, is it. We’ve not been affected.</p><p><strong>Carenza</strong>: [voice over] Not yet. But that could change. Mr Pelletier seems to think it might be dangerous.</p><p><strong>Mick</strong>: [voice over] Well, Mr Pelletier… There’s an interesting fellow.</p><p><strong>Carenza</strong>: [voice over] Mick… Does he seem like an archaeologist to you? Or someone who’s even remotely culturally sensitive?</p><p><strong>Mick</strong>: [voice over] Not hardly. (laughing) In fact he seems…</p><p><strong>Carenza</strong>: [voice over] Dangerous. Mick, there’s something very strange going on here, and I’m not willing to risk… If there’s even the slightest chance of getting hurt, I’m leaving the dig.</p><p><strong>Mick</strong>: [voice over] Ah, yes. I suppose that’s fair, given your condition. When I talk to Greg, I’ll try to catch the mysterious Mr Pelletier as well. Push a little harder this time.</p><p><strong>Carenza</strong>: [voice over] I don’t think it will help, but good luck.</p><p>A series of images show the members of Time Team getting back to work. The test pit crews use shovels to open up their small work areas. A shaggy-haired metal detectorist waves his wand over the spoil heaps. Carenza sets up her surveyor’s tripod. She and John mark out Trench 3. The JVC moves in and scrapes of a thin surface layer. Phil goes back to Trench 1 and finds another arrowhead.</p><p>A cow walks through the trees, and the sound of its bell jangles over the site.</p><p>[CUT TO]</p><p>Inside the Time Team’s tent, Stewart Ainsworth sits next to Raysan Al-Kubaisi. Raysan manipulates an image representing the topographical map of the area.</p><p>Tony walks up to them.</p><p><strong>Tony</strong>: Stewart! What are you up to? I didn’t see you at <em>all</em> yesterday.</p><p><strong>Stewart Ainsworth</strong>: Hallo, Tony. I was at the state and county capitals doing research.</p><p><strong>Tony</strong>: Oh yeah? What did you find out?</p><p><strong>Stewart</strong>: [banner: Stewart Ainsworth, Archaeological Surveyor, Royal Commission for Historic Monuments] Not much, to be honest. This area wasn’t really settled until nearly 100 years after the time we’re interested in, so there are only anecdotal accounts about what it looked like and who lived near here. However, I got hold of some U.S. Geological Survey topographical maps and they’ve been very interesting.</p><p>The image goes back to Raysan’s graphic. Stewart points out the features as he talks.</p><p><strong>Stewart</strong>: [voice over] I’ve had Raysan input the data for about 15 miles around the mound. It was already on a hill, but you can clearly see how it was built up to be higher than anything else in the area. Easily visible from most of its surroundings.</p><p><strong>Tony</strong>: It was built to make a statement.</p><p><strong>Stewart</strong>: I’d say so.</p><p><strong>Tony</strong>: (nodding) So why didn’t our 18th century neo-Pagans build their temple on top of it? <em>They</em> would’ve wanted to make that kind of statement.</p><p><strong>Stewart</strong>: (smiling) Would <em>you</em> like to drag 800 kilograms of stone up that slope?</p><p>Raysan laughs. Tony looks abashed. Then the image goes back to Raysan’s graphic. Stewart points out a snake-like depression not that far from the mound.</p><p><strong>Stewart</strong>: [voice over] I think this was once a river, possibly big enough for boats. And if that’s right, and you follow this down far enough – beyond what Raysan has input – it would’ve connected with the Mississippi and then all the other communities on it.</p><p><strong>Tony</strong>: So they just followed the river?</p><p><strong>Stewart</strong>: It makes sense, doesn’t it? What I want to know is, are there any buildings down there? I mean, structures the size of this mound aren’t usually built in isolation.</p><p><strong>Tony</strong>: You think there’ll be more mounds?</p><p><strong>Stewart</strong>: Not mounds – those would show up in the topography – but maybe a quay? If this was an industrial site - like all Phil's flint would suggest - then where did the workers and their families live? The evidence has to be in the land somewhere, and <em>that</em> I might be able to find.</p><p><strong>Tony</strong>: How’re you going to do that?</p><p><strong>Stewart</strong>: (smiling) What else? I’m going to go for a walk and look for my “lumps and bumps”.</p><p><strong>Tony</strong>: (smiling) Of course you are.</p><p>[CUT TO]</p><p>Stewart with his notebook, and Henry with his GPS walk into the woods on the far side of the Time Team tent.</p><p>Under the trees across the field from the trenches, a young calf kicks its legs and runs around a group of adult cows resting on the ground.</p><p>Tony stands in a very green part of the field – the grass looks lush, and the trees are filled with leaves. The sun is still rising.</p><p><strong>Tony</strong>: This is very strange. It looks like the ancient-Americans left this area around 1000 AD, but why? (spinning) The ground is fertile. There would have been wildlife, and yet they didn’t stay.</p><p><strong>Tony</strong>: (walking) As for the Europeans who came in the 1600s, we all know how land hungry <em>they</em> were. Again, fertile land, not <em>that</em> far from the Mississippi River, yet no one seems to have claimed this area until after the American Civil War.</p><p>Tony stops when the mound is behind him.</p><p><strong>Tony</strong>: And it’s not the mysterious mound keeping the Europeans away. There are <em>hundreds</em> of mounds in Missouri – thousands of them along the Mississippi – and the the settlers who moved in next to them just– (shrugging) – dug them up when they got in the way of building houses, railroads and cities. So what was it about <em>here</em>?</p><p><strong>Tony</strong>: Well, we don’t have an answer for the years between 1000 and 1850 AD, but we may have an explanation for why the Woodland era people – the ones who built the mound – why <em>they</em> left.</p><p>[CUT TO]</p><p>Phil and Dr Garcia are in Trench 1, which now runs in an irregular V from the slope into the field.</p><p><strong>Tony</strong>: At the edge of the trench, Phil and Dr Garcia have discovered what Phil calls “a cut” into the side of the hill – (holding up an overhead photo and tracing the V) – just here. And it appears to be proof that a <em>seam</em> of flint used to be there. The significance of this can’t be understated.</p><p>In Trench 1, Phil points out where original material has been removed, and the seam filled in with lighter dirt.</p><p><strong>Phil</strong>: [voice over] Here it iz. It’s amazingly wide – or it <em>wuz</em>. They probably dug up this ‘ole ‘illside to get to it.</p><p>Phil turns to wave down the slope towards the American team’s excavation, and up the track towards the paved road.</p><p><strong>Phil</strong>: Iz it possible… that the <em>whole</em> gully, from ‘ere right to the main road, wuz all flint working?</p><p><strong>Tom</strong>: (humming in thought) Maybe, maybe. It could explain whyda valley cut through an otherwise flat geological area. It could also explain whyda mound is here: it was an industrial town.</p><p><strong>Phil</strong>: Oo! Do we know if the mound wuz built at the same time?</p><p><strong>Tom</strong>: (shaking his head) No. Only way to tell ista open it up. (lifting a finger) But, but… The mounds we <em>do </em>have access to are all from aboutda same period. Give or take 500 year. And that matches most of the points you found.</p><p><strong>Phil</strong>: (looking up) Tha’s a pretty big margin of error.</p><p><strong>Tom</strong>: (shrugging) Best we can do.</p><p><strong>Phil</strong>: Workin’ theory, then.</p><p><strong>Tom</strong>: Si.</p><p>Dr Garcia looks around as Phil continues to remove the dirt that filled the remains of the flint mine.</p><p><strong>Tom</strong>: [voice over] It woulda been a hella lotta flint.</p><p>[CUT TO]</p><p>A long shot of the gully containing the American trench and work tents. The white fence makes the dirt track stand out. The smaller fire department pick-up drives away towards the paved road. A big, black pick-up truck has taken its place.</p><p><strong>Tony</strong>: [voice over] Did the ancient Mississippian peoples dig out this <em>whole</em> area looking for flint? Well, there had to have been <em>some</em> reason for their mound to be here. But after so long, it’s impossible to tell if the hollow was man-made without digging the whole thing.</p><p>The leaves on the birch trees are still. The sun makes them translucent. A fat bee settles on a dandelion.</p><p>Carenza pours water on a handkerchief and wipes her face and neck. Another digger applies a generous portion of sunscreen to his exposed arms. Another drains a bottle of water and carefully tucks the empty into their backpack.</p><p>[CUT TO]</p><p>The JVC bucket rests on the grass.</p><p>In the field, Mick talks with Ian Powesland. Ian holds a map. Tony walks into frame.</p><p><strong>Tony</strong>: Ian? I thought you were going to be digging Trench 4. What’s happened?</p><p><strong>Ian Powlesland</strong>: I am, but Dr Germaine has requested a slight change of focus. And he wants to do some digging around our trenches.</p><p><strong>Tony</strong>: He what? [to Mick] Is that okay?</p><p><strong>Mick</strong>: Yes, yes, of course. It’s his site.</p><p><strong>Tony</strong>: <em>You</em> never dig a trench.</p><p><strong>Mick</strong>: Well, no. But it’s hard work. Why would I want to do that?</p><p>They laugh. Then Tony turns to Ian.</p><p><strong>Tony</strong>: So what are you going to do instead?</p><p><strong>Ian</strong>: Oh, it’s not instead.</p><p>Ian lifts the photo to show them. It’s laminated, so he draws directly on it.</p><p><strong>Ian</strong>: [voice over] So there’s the ritual site… And that’s Phil’s trench. In between is where John’s radar found the anomaly. Trench 4 was going to run this way, but Dr Germaine asked to push the trench out almost four feet to the other side.</p><p>The image freezes and the trenches show up as orange rectangles. The radar results are graphically overlaid onto the photo. Trench 4 moves from its first position (over weak results) to a new position over no results.</p><p><strong>Tony</strong>: That’s a bit off from the radar results, isn’t it.</p><p><strong>Mick</strong>: A touch, but if that’s what Greg wants… [to Ian] Do your best.</p><p><strong>Ian</strong>: (nodding) Yeah. I will.</p><p><strong>Mick</strong>: Right. Good. Carry on, then.</p><p>Ian nods again and walks off screen.</p><p><strong>Tony</strong>: Is this normal? The site director moving a trench?</p><p><strong>Mick</strong>: Well, <em>normal</em>…</p><p>Ian steps into the JVC, preparing to extend Trench 4. Behind it, two diggers work on two different test pits. With all the piles of dug dirt, the field looks like it’s been infested by extremely large, geometric gophers.</p><p><strong>Mick</strong>: [voice over] You have to remember, Tony. Greg’s been digging in Missouri for over twenty years. That’s a vast experience in reading the landscape. He came over to check the trench site, and immediately decided that we needed to dig to the side of it. I’m just curious about what he <em>saw</em>.</p><p><strong>Tony</strong>: He didn’t say?</p><p><strong>Mick</strong>: (shrugging) Hunch.</p><p><strong>Tony</strong>: That’s hardly scientific!</p><p><strong>Mick</strong>: It’s how a lot of archaeology is done. Remember, that first time, seeing Alfred the Great’s church at Athelney?</p><p><strong>Tony</strong>: How could I forget? Our first episode.</p><p>Tony smiles broadly and bumps shoulders with Mick. Mick smiles back.</p><p><strong>Mick</strong>: The only reason we decided to use geophys was because we weren’t allowed to dig anywhere on site.</p><p><strong>Tony</strong>: The results were spectacular though.</p><p><strong>Mick</strong>: No argument. But if we’d been allowed to dig, I probably wouldn't have bothered with geophys, which was new and very expensive, if you recall. No, I would’ve based our trench locations on physical indications on the surface–</p><p><strong>Tony</strong>: Crop marks!</p><p><strong>Mick</strong>: (nodding) Crop marks, parch marks. Stewart’s ‘lumps and bumps’. All things that you didn’t even notice ten years ago.</p><p><strong>Tony</strong>: Are you saying we missed something here?</p><p><strong>Mick</strong>: (hesitating) I’m saying Dr Germaine knows the local terrain better than we do. If he wants to move a trench despite a lack of survey results, then we move the trench.</p><p><strong>Tony</strong>: Simple as that.</p><p><strong>Mick</strong>: (nodding) Simple as that.</p><p>
  <strong>[Logo and Drum Break]</strong>
</p><p>Stewart and Henry walk through the forest. It’s not bright under the canopy, even though the trees aren’t close together. Stewart stops and fans himself with his clipboard.</p><p><strong>Stewart</strong>: We’re not that far from the mound. If it weren't for the trees, it would be clearly visible.</p><p><strong>Henry</strong>: I don’t know. We’re pretty low here.</p><p><strong>Stewart</strong>: True. But if I’m right, then we’re in the bed of an old river. If we go up there– (pointing up a steep rise)</p><p><strong>Henry</strong>: The other bank?</p><p><strong>Stewart</strong>: That’s right. If we get up there. We should see it easily – even with all the trees.</p><p>Henry looks dubious, but he follows Stewart anyway.</p><p>Shots of them climbing up the rise. At one point, Henry hands Stewart his equipment so that he can grab rocks and roots to pull himself up. Once at the top, Stewart points back at the mound.</p><p><strong>Stewart</strong>: See there it is.</p><p>Henry has to jump a little to see it.</p><p>A shot from their position shows the top of the mound is visible through the trees.</p><p><strong>Stewart</strong>: Stick a couple torches on that, and it would be quite the landmark.</p><p>Henry half-shrugs, not convinced.</p><p>[CUT TO]</p><p><strong>Tony</strong>: [voice over] As usual with the Time Team, we go from famine to feast. Carenza’s barely had to scrape any dirt away in Trench 3, and she’s already got finds.</p><p>Carenza’s new trench, Trench 3, is about 2-by-3 metres and 30 centimetres deep. The JVC sits idle at the side of it. Matt Williams is digging with her, and their finds trays are filling up.</p><p><strong>Tony</strong>: They’ve found these – (holding up his hand) These are animal bones and they show signs of having been butchered. This is a thimble. And a button. (lowering his hands) And these aren’t the best of it.</p><p>Tony stands at the side of Trench 3.</p><p><strong>Tony</strong>: Carenza! You have good news! Have you discovered John’s second anomaly?</p><p><strong>Carenza</strong>: (looking up) I think we have, actually.</p><p>The image changes to one further back and higher up.</p><p><strong>Carenza</strong>: [voice over] You see the dark patch just there…</p><p>The image freezes and a dark circle appears where she was pointing.</p><p><strong>Tony</strong>: Oh yeah! May I?</p><p>Carenza nods, getting to her feet as Tony jumps into the trench.</p><p><strong>Tony</strong>: Is that burning?</p><p><strong>Carenza</strong>: Yes, it is. Good eye! (pointing at the finds trays) We’ve found charred bones, as if someone had flung the remains of their meal into the fire.</p><p><strong>Tony</strong>: So somebody had a fire just here. No way to tell when, though. Right?</p><p><strong>Carenza</strong>: ‘Fraid not. We’re looking around it now for dating material. Pots, jars, anything. We’re going to have the metal detectorist go over it, so ….</p><p><strong>Tony</strong>: Fingers crossed.</p><p><strong>Carenza</strong>: (laughing) Thanks!</p><p>Carenza goes back to scraping out the soil, looking for evidence.</p><p>The camera moves away from Carenza along the surface of the trench to where Matt pulls a stone out of the dirt. He examines it, turning it this way and that, rubs dirt off it, runs a finger along one edge. Then he frowns and tosses it on his spoil heap.</p><p>Tony walks away, talking to the camera.</p><p><strong>Tony</strong>: A <em>fire pit!</em> That’s exciting news, but we don’t really have time to enjoy it, because Dr Germaine was right. Not even an hour after we extended Trench 4 and Ian’s <em>found</em> something.</p><p>Tony runs off ahead of the camera.</p><p>[CUT TO]</p><p>At the side of Trench 4, Mick takes a picture of Ian carefully working around something in front of him. Tony jogs into frame.</p><p><strong>Tony</strong>: What is it? What have you found?</p><p><strong>Ian</strong>: I think it’s a wagon wheel.</p><p>A close up of a thin, curved metal piece attached to a piece of disintegrating wood. Ian uses his pick to point out what he sees.</p><p><strong>Ian</strong>: [voice over] This straight wood looks like it could be a spoke, and then this curved bit would be the actual wheel. And I <em>think</em> this is a metal rim that would have been banded around the whole thing.</p><p>Ian pokes at the shard of degraded metal. The image freezes and the possible wheel parts light up. The image starts moving again as Ian continues talking.</p><p><strong>Ian</strong>: [voice over] You can see some wood still attached a nail or something.</p><p><strong>Tony</strong>: (grabbing Mick’s arm) A wagon wheel! That’s certainly not 1,000 years old!</p><p><strong>Mick</strong>: (laughing) No, it’s definitely after European settlement, but –</p><p><strong>Tony</strong>: But? What you <em>mean</em> ‘but’? We’re looking for something to support our French neo-Pagans beings here, and we <em>found</em> it!</p><p><strong>Mick</strong>: But is it theirs? Horse-drawn carts were routinely used on farms from settlement right up to the Second World War. Even in the US.</p><p><strong>Tony</strong>: Noo!</p><p>He looks at Ian, and Ian nods.</p><p><strong>Ian</strong>: I mean, it’s not likely – why would a farmer leave a broken cart in the middle of his field – but (shrugging).</p><p><strong>Tony</strong>: (to Mick) Can we <em>really</em> not know how old the wheel is?</p><p><strong>Mick</strong>: I kinda depends on what we find. Wooden cartwheels didn’t change much between 1650 and 1880 when rubber became common. But if we can get to the hub – (gesturing) where the spokes come together, and the axle meets the wheel. Those changed quite a bit – both as metal manufacturing changed and from wheelwright to wheelwright.</p><p><strong>Tony</strong>: Alright fine. That’s <em>great</em>! But surely, if it contains metal, the detectorist can tell us where it is and we can get started – Ian, you’re shaking your head. Why are you shaking your head?</p><p><strong>Ian</strong>: It’s not working.</p><p><strong>Tony</strong>: What? That’s silly… (turning to wave at someone off screen) Drew! Drew! Come over here.</p><p>The metal detectorist (later identified as Andrew Riddle) is over by Trench 3. He ambles over to Trench 4. He’s young, white, and bearded, with long, ginger curls flaring out from under his knit cap and around his headphones. He wears cargo shorts, heavy hiking boots, and a red, flannel shirt. He carries the heavy metal detector comfortably.</p><p><strong>Tony</strong>: Drew, what’s this about you not getting any reading from Ian’s wagon wheel?</p><p><strong>Drew</strong>: (loudly) Tha’s righ’, Tony. I’ve run m’wand over it several times, an’ there’s no response.</p><p><strong>Tony</strong>: Is your wand broken?</p><p><strong>Drew</strong>: (looking offended) Absolu’ely not! I jus’ finished a pass on Carenza’s trench, and go’ a result. ‘ere, watch. The metal rim should be ‘ere–</p><p>Andrew waves his wand over the untouched surface a hand-span from where the metal rim has been dug. Nothing. He lowers it to the exposed bit of wheel with its metal rim. Nothing until he’s practically touching it and then the beep is <em>very</em> loud.</p><p><strong>Drew</strong>: (loudly) That’s not normal. An’ listen to it whine–</p><p>Andrew lifts it up to shoulder height, and the beeping stops. The camera moves closer, and the boom mike appears in frame. A high ‘scree’ sound can be heard.</p><p><strong>Drew</strong>: (loudly) It’s this ‘ole bloody area – the dead zone. I mean. ‘t’sa freakishly accurate name, it is. Weirdest bloody results we’re getting.</p><p><strong>Tony</strong>: (patting him on the arm) Alright, then. I believe you. It’s not reassuring, but I believe you.</p><p>Andrew leaves, and Tony turns to Mick who is laughing at his frustration.</p><p><strong>Tony</strong>: So what do we do now, then?</p><p><strong>Mick</strong>: We’ll have to do it the old-fashioned way and dig it out more.</p><p><strong>Ian</strong>: You mean <em>I’ll</em> have to.</p><p><strong>Mick</strong>: (laughing) Well, yes. That’s a given.</p><p><strong>Tony</strong>: And how long will that take? I assume you won’t just jump to the centre.</p><p><strong>Mick</strong>: No, not going to do that – the wood in the spokes’ll be too fragile to take the weight now they’re exposed. I <em>am</em> assigning more diggers, but it’ll still take some time. Wooden wheels like these can be four… five feet across?</p><p>He looks at Ian who nods back at him in confirmation.</p><p><strong>Tony</strong>: So how long will it take?</p><p><strong>Mick</strong>: (shrugging) Well, Tone, you know how it works. It takes as long as it takes.</p><p><strong>Tony</strong>: [to camera] Ten years and the answer’s never changed. [to Ian] Well, then? Go on! Get digging!</p><p><strong>Ian</strong>: (laughing) Alright, alright…</p><p>Ian bends back down to continue working.</p><p>Dr Martineau steps into camera frame next to Tony.</p><p><strong>Tony</strong>: Lisa! How’re you doing? What’re you doing away from your tent?</p><p><strong>Lisa</strong>: We need to talk.</p><p><strong>Tony</strong>: Sure, of course. Let’s get you miked.</p><p><strong>Lisa</strong>: Not here. In the tent.</p><p>Tony looks puzzled, but agrees.</p><p><strong>Tony</strong>: Alright…</p><p>[CUT TO]</p><p>Tony and Dr Martineau stand next to a table with a couple of covered finds trays on it. Mr Pelletier stands to the side, only his chest and left arm visible. Behind them, Dr Martineau’s assistant works silently.</p><p>There are scorch marks on the side of the tent, and more duct tape since the last time it was on camera.</p><p><strong>Lisa</strong>: I never did show you the items we found with the skeletons, did I?</p><p>Tony looks up towards Mr Pelletier.</p><p><strong>Tony</strong>: No, actually. We got interrupted by, um, Mr Pelletier’s arrival.</p><p>Dr Martineau pulls out a mobile flip-phone. It’s very sleek and very expensive. She turns it towards Tony who peers at it.</p><p><strong>Lisa</strong>: Sorry the picture’s so small.</p><p><strong>Tony</strong>: That’s fairly crude, isn’t it?</p><p>Tony lifts her phone to show the picture to the camera. It’s a grainy, rolling image of large antlers crudely attached to a badly-sewn leather skullcap. Thin, leather straps, attached to the top, dangle unevenly down the sides.</p><p><strong>Tony</strong>: Wait. Didn’t you say it was stolen?</p><p><strong>Lisa</strong>: That’s right.</p><p><strong>Tony</strong>: (pointing at the image) Why would somebody steal this? It looks like a kid’s school project.</p><p><strong>Pelletier</strong><strong>:</strong> They probably made it when they got here. Killed a deer for food and made a headdress with the rest.</p><p><strong>Tony</strong>: Oh, yeah. That makes sense – as much as anything in the place is making sense.</p><p>Mr Pelletier snorts.</p><p>Tony takes a final look at the picture on her mobile, before returning it to Dr Martineau.</p><p><strong>Tony</strong>: You also said there was a knife.</p><p><strong>Lisa</strong>: Yes. This knife…</p><p>Dr Martineau lifts the cloth from one of the finds trays.</p><p>Inside is a corroded knife. The hilt still shows signs of an intricate twist or braid design. The blade also appears to be ornately worked. It has three slotted channels running more than halfway down the blade from the hilt.</p><p><strong>Tony</strong>: [off screen] Well, that’s gorgeous!</p><p>Tony reaches out to it.</p><p><strong>Pelletier</strong>: [off screen) Don’t touch it!</p><p>Tony draws back his hand.</p><p><strong>Tony</strong>: I thought it was missing? Stolen?</p><p><strong>Pelletier</strong>: [off screen] It was in Germaine’s hotel room.</p><p><strong>Tony</strong>: You… broke into his room?</p><p><strong>Lisa</strong>: Before Greg took the knife–</p><p><strong>Pelletier</strong>: [off screen] And <em>lied</em> about it being stolen–</p><p><strong>Lisa</strong>: It was determined that the hilt is of carved bone. It might be animal or human bone.</p><p><strong>Tony</strong>: <em>Human</em> bone…</p><p><strong>Pelletier</strong>: [off screen] It <em>is</em> a knife made for Pagans.</p><p><strong>Tony</strong>: You mean Wiccan.</p><p><strong>Lisa</strong>: No, he doesn’t. Wiccan is a modern term. Given the headdress and everything else we’ve found, the assumption that these people were neo-Pagans from the Age of Enlightenment, is likely correct.</p><p><strong>Tony</strong>: (nodding) Right. The 1700s. That’s the Hellfire Club and the revival of Druidism.</p><p><strong>Pelletier</strong>: [off screen] I’m thinking these guys were more Hellfire than Hippy.</p><p><strong>Tony</strong>: You can’t know that.</p><p><strong>Lisa</strong>: Actually… You see these dark spots on the blade?</p><p>She points to dirt that’s clinging to the grooves. It’s a darker colour than other dirt on the blade.</p><p><strong>Lisa</strong>: [off screen] When it was first brought in, I tested it for blood residue.</p><p><strong>Tony</strong>: Good lord! <em>Is</em> it blood?</p><p><strong>Lisa</strong>: Oh, yes. It’s too degraded to tell if it’s human with the equipment I have here.</p><p><strong>Pelletier</strong>: [off screen] It’s human. Nothing other than human sacrifice could’ve caused that explosion.</p><p><strong>Tony</strong>: Explosion?</p><p><strong>Pelletier</strong>: [off screen] Yeah. Explosion. Did you think aliens ripped open those people’s chests?</p><p><strong>Lisa</strong>: (clearing throat) We believe that the ceremony was supposed to revive a pre-Roman, Gallic god–</p><p><strong>Pelletier</strong>: [off screen] Cernunnos, a forest god – hence the antlers.</p><p><strong>Tony</strong>: (slowly) Trying to… what?</p><p><strong>Lisa</strong>: (sighing) What’s important is that, in conversations I’ve had with Greg since he found this, he seems to believe that a second attempt will be successful.</p><p>Tony is quiet for a long, stunned moment.</p><p><strong>Tony</strong>: You’re [bleeping] with me.</p><p><strong>Pelletier</strong>: [off screen] I wish we were.</p><p>The camera shifts, refocusing quickly on Mr Pelletier who is shown to be an unshaven, dark-haired, craggy-faced white man of about 40 years. His expression is one of complete seriousness.</p><p><strong>Pelletier</strong>: (shifting out of frame) Don’t point that at me.</p><p><strong>Lisa</strong>: This isn’t about <em>our</em> belief, Tony. But <em>Greg’s</em>. Has he talked to you about the fourteenth body?</p><p><strong>Tony</strong>: No…?</p><p>Mr Pelletier’s sigh is audible.</p><p><strong>Lisa</strong>: From the moment the centre stone was uncovered, Greg–</p><p><strong>Tony</strong>: The centre stone? You mean the cracked tile in the middle of the square.</p><p><strong>Pelletier</strong>: [off screen] No. She means some other altar stone in in the middle of the wilderness.</p><p>Dr Martineau gives Mr Pelletier a reproving look. He shifts away, muttering inaudibly.</p><p><strong>Lisa</strong>: They’d only discovered four skeletons by the time Greg reached the centre stone, and yet from that moment, he told <em>everyone</em> to expect fourteen.</p><p><strong>Tony</strong>: Why would he do that?</p><p><strong>Lisa</strong>: Exactly. <em>Why</em> did he think that so early?</p><p><strong>Tony</strong>: Wait! Dr Kim – Paula – she said something about the floor being 14-by-14-foot. So, I mean, it could’ve been a guess. Right?</p><p>Tony smiles tentatively. Dr Martineau doesn’t return it. Mr Pelletier snorts derisively. He steps forward, keeping his face out of frame and waving at the camera.</p><p><strong>Pelletier</strong>: Turn that off. Turn everything off. [bleeping] stupid idea to talk about this on [bleeping] camera. Go take pictures of the skeletons or [bleep].</p><p>[CUT TO]</p><p>Farther back in the tent, Dr Martineau’s assistant moves one of the burned skeletons, carefully taking the bones out of the damaged tray and reassembling them in a new one. The mutilated ribs are obvious.</p><p>The sound operator is conspicuously in frame, but he holds his boom mike casually over his shoulder – pointing towards the group nearer the tent entrance.</p><p>The group – Tony, Dr Martineau and Mr Pelletier – stand around a table in the back of the shot. They are slightly blurry, but they stand close to each other and talk energetically. The quality of the background conversation is actually quite good. Their audio has been boosted, and the audio of the assistant, standing in front of the camera, has been muted.</p><p><strong>Assistant</strong>: [muted] We use fire resistant materials for everything. Or as much as we can given the cost …</p><p><strong>Pelletier</strong>: [background] … only thirteen skeletons. If there <em>should’ve</em> been fourteen then one of the “willing sacrifices” wasn’t so willing.</p><p><strong>Tony</strong>: [background] If you’re right, it’s hardly surprising, but that was <em>250 years ago</em>. What has that got to do with Dr Germaine today?</p><p><strong>Assistant<em>: </em></strong>[muted] … but the fire almost completely destroyed the headman’s bones.</p><p><strong>Lisa</strong>: [background] Our fear … driving Greg to find the last body, will …</p><p><strong>Pelletier</strong>: [background] Kill one of you … final sacrifice.</p><p><strong>Tony</strong>: [background] <em>Bollocks</em>! You’re talking about a <em>respected</em> professor with <em>decades</em> of experience!</p><p><strong>Assistant</strong>: [muted] Oddly enough, there’s only light damage to the other remains.</p><p><strong>Pelletier</strong>: [background] And that means he can’t be crazy?</p><p><strong>Lisa</strong>: [background] There can be many causes of mental disorders – age is one of them.</p><p><strong>Tony</strong>: [background] I don’t buy it.</p><p><strong>Assistant</strong>: [muted] Even the ones we stored closest to the headman’s bones are mostly okay.</p><p><strong>Lisa</strong>: [background] I didn’t want to either, but then, uh, Eduardo showed me the knife. The one Greg swore to both to the police <em>and his College Board</em> had been stolen.</p><p><strong>Tony</strong>: [background] And you trust… (jerking his thumb at Mr Pelletier) You trust <em>this</em> guy, more than you trust Dr Germaine?</p><p><strong>Lisa</strong>: [background] I’ve known Greg a long time, and the last ten days – since finding the headman’s body actually …</p><p><strong>Assistant</strong>: [muted] Of course, we have to check them all anyway. Just to be sure.</p><p><strong>Lisa</strong>: [background] … Since then, so much of Greg’s behaviour has been completely out of character. He’s been irritable, obsessive – absolutely irrational.</p><p>Tony drags a hand over his face.</p><p><strong>Tony</strong>: [background] You realize this all sounds nuts.</p><p><strong>Assistant</strong>: [muted] This person was a male – mid-teens to early-20s.</p><p><strong>Pelletier</strong>: [background] Fanatics <em>are </em>nuts. Religious … worse.</p><p><strong>Tony</strong>: [background] Are you calling Dr Germaine–</p><p><strong>Pelletier</strong>: [background] … fourteen people came … middle of nowhere … a <em>ton </em>of French limestone … worshipers died out <em>millennia</em> ago… Can you really call that rational?</p><p><strong>Assistant</strong>: [muted] There should have been a matching female, I think.</p><p><strong>Lisa</strong>: [background] And belief like that, it can change an area. Change the feel of it.</p><p><strong>Tony</strong>: [background] You’re talking about psychics and auras. Which is [bleeped].</p><p><strong>Lisa</strong>: [background] I’ve seen your show, Tony. You’ve stood on land where people died violently, and it affected you. You could feel the mark it left.</p><p>Tony hesitates.</p><p><strong>Assistant</strong>: [muted] They found two babies, too young to determine sex …</p><p><strong>Tony</strong>: [background] I don’t… I <em>can’t</em> believe it. <em>But</em>… if you <em>are</em> right, and Dr Germaine is somehow… <em>possessed</em>. What do you expect me to do about it?</p><p><strong>Pelletier</strong>: [background] Get the rancher–</p><p><strong>Lisa</strong>: [background] Pete Yarborough.</p><p><strong>Pelletier</strong>: [background] Yarborough … cancel the dig.</p><p><strong>Assistant</strong>: [muted] … four children, two adults and four elders, evenly male and female …</p><p><strong>Tony</strong>: [background] <em>Call off the dig?</em> Are you [bleeped] mad! We’ve just started–</p><p><strong>Pelletier</strong>: [background] Do you want to die?</p><p><strong>Lisa</strong>: [background] Do you want any of your people to be hurt?</p><p><strong>Assistant</strong>: [muted] … but this young fellow’s all by himself.</p><p><strong>Tony</strong>: [background] That’s not <em>really</em> a possibility.</p><p><strong>Pelletier</strong>: [background] …’re <em>not listening</em>!</p><p><strong>Lisa</strong>: [background] If Greg – or anyone else – finds the … I think it just might be a certainty. I don’t … else to die. Do you?</p><p><strong>Assistant</strong>: Such a sad end for everyone.</p><p>The assistant sets out a small tray – half the size of the one he’d been working on before – that holds the remains of a toddler. Its bones seem tiny even in this smaller tray.</p><p>[CUT TO]</p><p>Tony strides past the American trench, over the cattle grid, and up the slope to the Time Team finds tent. He’s not walking for the camera – he`s walking much too fast – and the image jerks and blurs. He stops abruptly. Turns to face the camera operator and sound recordist (later identified as Dennis Borrow and Steve Bowden).</p><p><strong>Tony</strong>: Dennis, turn that off for a minute, or turn it away or something. Steve? You too.</p><p>The image changes to footage of the Missouri diggers cleaning off the Parisian limestone tiles. It’s from earlier because there’s more dirt than the last time it was shown. Also shown is footage from inside the Time Team’s finds tent, some shots of the geophys team pacing the mound, and some of Stewart and Henry looking under rocks in the forest.</p><p>The audio for Dennis (the camera operator) and Steve (the sound recordist) is rough, but Tony’s is clear, as he’s still miked and the sound recordist didn’t stop recording.</p><p><strong>Tony</strong>: [voice over] Steve, I assume you were listening in?</p><p><strong>Steve</strong>: [voice over] … [bleeped] weird.</p><p><strong>Tony</strong>: [voice over] No arguments here. What do you think? Do you think we’re in danger if we stay?</p><p><strong>Dennis</strong>: [voice over] What … think will happen?</p><p><strong>Tony</strong>: [voice over] I don’t know. Maybe, Dr Germaine will come after us with a knife?</p><p><strong>Steve</strong>: [voice over] Is that all? … [bleep] old guy. No offense, Tony.</p><p><strong>Tony</strong>: [voice over] I wasn’t before, but I think I am now! (sighing) It’s just… That fire, last night. That <em>was</em> strange. That fire was green–</p><p><strong>Steve</strong>: [voice over] … just chemicals … colours.</p><p><strong>Dennis</strong>: [voice over] There was hardly any fire damage. I noticed …</p><p><strong>Tony</strong>: [voice over] Just that one spot?</p><p><strong>Dennis</strong>: [voice over] Not much more.</p><p><strong>Steve</strong>: [voice over] Whole thing [bleeped] …</p><p><strong>Tony</strong>: [voice over] Do you feel safe staying? Should I talk to Mick and Tim about pulling out?</p><p><strong>Steve</strong>: [voice over] [bleeped] no! Just getting interesting.</p><p><strong>Dennis</strong>: [voice over] … just found a wagon wheel!</p><p><strong>Steve</strong>: [voice over] Yah. At least … not more [bleeped] arrowheads.</p><p><strong>Tony</strong>: [voice over] Alright. But will you guys spread the word a little? Tell everyone to watch for Dr Germaine?</p><p><strong>Dennis</strong>: [voice over] Tell them to look out for the lot of them Yanks.</p><p><strong>Steve</strong>: [voice over] … all [bleeped] insane.</p><p><strong>Tony</strong>: [voice over] Right then! We carry on. Let’s film something that’ll wrap up whatever useable footage we got from that.</p><p><strong>Dennis</strong>: [voice over] Right’o, guv.</p><p>[CUT TO]</p><p>Tony walks up the slope to the Time Team trenches. He walks much slower. The sun is a little higher than it was before, and there’s no hint of anxiety in his face or voice.</p><p><strong>Tony</strong>: There’s no doubt that something horrific happened here, but that was <em>centuries</em> ago. Listening to Dr Martineau and Mr Pelletier, with all their dire hints, made me feel like I was in an old Hammer horror film rather than on an archaeological dig site. (leaning toward the camera) To be honest, it made me <em>very</em> uncomfortable.</p><p>An eagle flies away with a snake in its talons.</p><p>[CUT TO]</p><p>A long shot of the site. All of the Time Team’s trenches are in view, with diggers, sifters, the metal detectorist and the film crews moving around between them.Geophys is still working on the mound.</p><p><strong>Tony</strong>: [voice over] Back up top, Phil and Dr Garcia are still finding flint, Ian’s got a wagon wheel – just one for now – but Carenza may have the biggest find of all.</p><p>Shots of each trench as Tony mentions them: Phil brushing dirt off a stone then tossing it to the side; Ian using a paintbrush to clean dirt from delicate wood. Finally, a shot that moves up Trench 3 to Carenza.</p><p>Tony steps into frame close to Trench 3.</p><p><strong>Tony</strong>: She thinks it’s a pot – a large, <em>metal</em> one. Which means it’s probably going to be from our neo-Pagans. Carenza! Can I see it?</p><p><strong>Carenza</strong>: Well, only what we’ve exposed so far. It’s not much.</p><p><strong>Tony</strong>: Can I…?</p><p>Tony waves at the surface of the trench, asking permission to step in. Once he has it, he steps down and crouches next to Carenza’s find.</p><p>[CUT TO]</p><p>A large jagged item has been partially dug out of the stony ground near the side of the fire pit. It’s dull green and severely dented.</p><p><strong>Tony</strong><strong>:</strong> Is that it? The green means it’s copper, right?</p><p><strong>Carenza</strong>: That’s right, and if you look here –</p><p>Close up of where the metal is broken.</p><p><strong>Carenza</strong>: [voice over] Can you see this line? That’s either tin or lead, and depending on what that material is, we’ll likely be able to date the pot to within a decade or two.</p><p><strong>Tony</strong>: Really? That’s wonderful!</p><p><strong>Carenza</strong>: Yes, it is. <em>However</em>…</p><p><strong>Tony</strong>: Don’t say it!</p><p><strong>Carenza</strong>: I still need to dig it out to be sure. I <em>think</em> it’s a pot, and I <em>hope</em> it’s from the 1700’s, but until I see the whole thing, I don’t actually know that that’s what it is.</p><p>She smiles as she says it – obviously teasing. Tony responds by rolling his eyes.</p><p><strong>Tony</strong>: So how long will it take?</p><p><strong>Carenza</strong>: (laughing) Why, it’ll take as long as it takes, of course.</p><p><strong>Tony</strong>: [to camera] Now they’re just being <em>mean</em>.</p><p>In the background, Carenza and Matt Williams are laughing.</p><p>A long shot of all the Time Team’s active trenches: to the right of the screen and nearest the camera, Phil and Dr Garcia are still in Trench 1, though they’re down to just one digger and one team of sifters.</p><p>To the far right, Carenza and two diggers look for anything that will tell them who built their fire pit. She has two sifting teams and a recording crew close by.</p><p>Slightly left, but furthest away, Trench 4. Ian and a two diggers work on freeing the wagon wheel. It also has a camera crew and a couple teams of sifters. Dr Germaine can be seen walking around Trench 4. He appears to be digging a line in the dirt, lifting the turf and looking under it.</p><p><strong>Tony</strong>: [voice over] And so it went for the rest of the morning. Tantalizing hints of things that could reveal <em>so much</em> about our doomed neo-Pagans, but that require a lot of careful digging to access.</p><p>The sun is very bright. Even the calves are resting in the shade.</p><p><strong>Tony</strong>: [voice over] And as much as I wanted to, I couldn’t <em>really</em> ask them to work any harder.</p><p>Behind all the pits, at the very top of the screen, the mound is visible with the geophys walking slowly around and over it. The image zooms in to…</p><p>One of the geophys team leans the sensor array against her leg as she takes a drink from a bottle of water. Her partner stands with his back to the camera. He pours water on a cloth and wipes his face and neck, waving insects away whilst he does it.</p><p><strong>Tony</strong>: [voice over] There’s very few trees on the ridge, and most of our trenches are fully exposed to the sun. At nearly 30 Celsius, and a humidity of nearly 70 percent, working <em>too</em> hard could kill someone.</p><p>Stewart and Henry stop in the shade next to a small creek. They pull drinks and sandwiches from their backpacks and make themselves comfortable on moss-covered boulders.</p><p><strong>Tony</strong>: [voice over] Everyone was happy when it was time to break for lunch.</p><p>[CUT TO]</p><p>Tony sits in a banquette seat in the long dining caravan, arms stretched out along the back. The caravan is filled with diggers in similar seats, eating and chatting, discussing the newest finds excitedly.</p><p><strong>Tony</strong>: It’s not last night’s barbeque feast, but there’s plenty of water (shaking a bottle) and it’s air conditioned. Sometimes, it’s the small things you have to enjoy.</p><p>The camera backs away as Phil and Carenza move in with their plates to sit with Tony.</p><p>
  <strong>[Advert Break Image and Drums]</strong>
</p>
  </div></div>
<a name="section0004"><h2>4. Part III</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>
  <strong>[Banner: Part III]</strong>
</p><p>The sun is a high and bright.</p><p>After lunch, everyone returns to their trenches. Some of them pass by Dr Germaine, who is still digging lines around the site. There doesn’t appear to be any purpose to his activity. Some of the diggers give him perplexed looks, but mostly they continue on to the larger trenches.</p><p>[CUT TO]</p><p>Tony is in Trench 1 with Phil. Almost all the way along, the sides are a good half-metre to a meter high. He carefully picks out another arrowhead surrounded by natural stones in the Missouri soil. The feet of a second camera operator are just visible in frame.</p><p><strong>Tony</strong>: We’re midway through Day 2, and things are looking up. Carenza’s busy in Trench 3, digging out her pot, and Ian’s working in Trench 4 with his wagon wheel – and I’m here digging up yet another arrowhead from Trench 1. (loudly) So how many does this make?</p><p>Tony switches to a dental pick.</p><p><strong>Phil</strong>: [off screen] Oo, ‘bout 40, I reckon. 45?</p><p>Close up of Tony digging around the edge of his find.</p><p><strong>Tony</strong>: [off screen] And how many Daltons?</p><p><strong>Phil</strong>: [off screen] Jus’ those firs’ three. All the rest ‘ave been Woodland – only one to two thousand years old.</p><p><strong>Tony</strong>: [to camera] And that explains why Phil’s letting me dig this one up unsupervised.</p><p><strong>Phil</strong>: [off screen] Hey now! There’s no ‘let’ about it. After ten years, you know what yer doin’.</p><p><strong>Tony</strong>: And it’s pretty hard to damage flint.</p><p>Image switches to Phil’s face. He’s concentrating on what he’s working on.</p><p><strong>Phil</strong>: Well, that’s true ‘nough, I suppose.</p><p><strong>Tony</strong>: [off screen] It’s very true.</p><p>Back to Tony, now sitting up.</p><p><strong>Tony</strong>: Tell me again – what exactly are you working on?</p><p>Close up of Phil using a small, stiff-bristled paintbrush to sweep loosened dirt off his find. It's a wide, curved metal band with lumps of corrosion.</p><p><strong>Phil</strong>: [voice over] A lovely copper bracelet. Broken, unfortunately. A delicate little thing.</p><p>The image goes back to Tony, bent over again, picking at his arrowhead. He stops and addresses the camera.</p><p><strong>Tony</strong>: It’s funny. Yesterday, working on a 2,000-year-old arrowhead would’ve had all our hearts pumping with excitement, but today, after finding over 40 of them… It all seems rather routine. Weird that.</p><p>Tony’s walkie-talkie – a large, black rectangle – crackles, and then Mick voice comes through, oddly hollow and static-y.</p><p><strong>Mick</strong>: [off screen] Tony? Can you … over to Ian’s … pit?</p><p>Tony wipes his hand on his trousers before picking up a large walkie-talkie.</p><p><strong>Tony</strong>: Have they found something?</p><p><strong>Mick</strong>: [off screen] I think … have.</p><p>Tony stands up. The camera turns so that we can see Phil working at the far end, watched by the second camera operator and sound recordist.</p><p><strong>Tony</strong>: Phil! Is it okay if I…?</p><p><strong>Phil</strong>: [off screen] Go on!</p><p>Close up of Phil, still concentrating, muttering to himself. He picks dirt off the copper band.</p><p><strong>Phil</strong>: I should ‘ave this little beauty out by then, I reckon. Look a’ it… Tha’s right. Come on out…</p><p>[CUT TO]</p><p>Ian and Trish Potter, an archaeology intern, are visible in Trench 4. Ian is crouching close to Trish, looking at her find. Mick stands at the side, watching them both. Tony walks into frame.</p><p><strong>Tony</strong>: What’s going on? Why’d you call me over?</p><p><strong>Mick</strong>: (nodding at Trish) They’ve found the other side of the wheel.</p><p><strong>Tony</strong>: Really?</p><p><strong>Ian</strong>: Oh, yes. Definitely.</p><p><strong>Tony</strong>: That was fast…</p><p>The image changes to the trench. Coming out of the dirt is a bent metal strip with chunks of wood attached. As she talks, Trish points to that and to some lighter-coloured dirt in the same area.</p><p><strong>Trish</strong>: Well, using the angles of Ian's spokes and the arc of the rim, it was pretty easy to calculate the wheel's dimensions.</p><p><strong>Tony</strong>: Well, maybe for <em>you</em>. I'd've made a right hash of it.</p><p><strong>Trish</strong>: (awkwardly) I like maths.</p><p><strong>Tony</strong>: Obviously. Well done, you!</p><p>Back to the exposed parts of the wheel.</p><p><strong>Trish</strong>: [voice over] You can see the rim here – just like Ian’s – and then a second strip on the inside, which is a kind of bracing, I think.</p><p><strong>Tony</strong>: If they used extra metal, does that mean this was a heavy-duty cart? Could this be the one they hauled the limestone in?</p><p><strong>Trish</strong>: (shrugging) Most wheels were made with iron strips like this. Even the strongest wood would break down too fast, and iron was commonly used until rubber replaced it – sometime in the late 1800s? Early 1900s? I don’t know exactly when that happened.</p><p><strong>Tony</strong>: So still no way to date it reliably until we reach the hub?</p><p><strong>Trish</strong>: (shaking her head) ‘Fraid not.</p><p><strong>Tony</strong>: Well, now that you know how large it is, will you be able to dig it out quicker?</p><p>Ian and Trish look at each in silent questioning.</p><p><strong>Ian</strong>: Hard to say. It'll depend on the condition of the wheel.</p><p><strong>Trish:</strong> The better condition it's in–</p><p><strong>Ian</strong>: Larger, more intact pieces.</p><p><strong>Trish</strong>: –the quicker it'll be to dig it out. But it's a big piece.</p><p><strong>Tony</strong>: Wait! I already know what you’re going to say.</p><p>All the archaeologists chuckle at him.</p><p><strong>Trish</strong>: (kindly) Come back in an hour. We should know more then.</p><p><strong>Tony</strong>: (to camera) Well, I guess we've got our orders. Come on! Let's find someone else to bother.</p><p>[CUT TO]</p><p>As Tony moves away from the trench, Ian grabs Mick’s sleeve. Their discussion is generally clear, but obviously recorded without their awareness.</p><p>The images switch to a series of shots of diggers in the “dead zone” working diligently on their assigned test pits or trenches. At the side of the bigger trenches, student interns carefully sift through the spoil heaps.</p><p>Amongst it all, Dr Germaine’s unorganized digging looks like a curving line of micro-test pits, dug with no finesse or long-term plan.</p><p><strong>Mick</strong>: [voice over] Ian, what is it? What do you want me to see?</p><p><strong>Ian</strong>: [voice over] It’s not… I mean… I think Dr Germaine is… Well, quite frankly, I’m concerned.</p><p><strong>Mick</strong>: [voice over] What do you want me to do?</p><p><strong>Ian</strong>: [voice over] Can you talk to him? He’s digging around us, and he’s muttering to himself, or something. (lowering his voice) … sounds<em> crazy … </em>disturbing.</p><p><strong>Mick</strong>: [voice over] Oh dear. What do you think I can do?</p><p><strong>Ian</strong>: [voice over] Honestly? He probably just needs to take a break – get out of the sun for a while. But I’m just a field archaeologist – he’ll ignore me. You’re a professor – a fellow academic. He’s more likely to listen to you.</p><p><strong>Mick</strong>: [voice over] I don’t often brush off my degree on a site, but sure. I’ll talk to him.</p><p>The camera picks up Mick walking over to Dr Germaine, who is practically creeping along the ground – digging and lifting and searching?</p><p><strong>Mick</strong>: [voice over] Greg. How’s it going over here?</p><p><strong>Greg</strong>: [inaudible]</p><p><strong>Mick</strong>: [voice over] What’s that? Have you found something?</p><p><strong>Greg</strong>: [voice over] The fourteen …. here.</p><p><strong>Mick</strong>: [voice over] The fourteenth body? You mean you found bones?</p><p>Dr Germaine sits up and glares at Mick.</p><p><strong>Greg</strong>: [voice over] <em>No</em>, I <em>haven’t</em> … ‘pen soon. I need to be ready! I ...</p><p>Dr Germaine turns back to where he’s digging. The image changes to a long shot from the camera near Phil’s trench. Mick is easily visible in his bright T-shirt. Next to him, Dr Germaine looks unkempt. The camera and sound technicians from Trench 4  are also in frame.</p><p><strong>Mick</strong>: [voice over] Greg, old son, if there is another body, it’s not going anywhere, and um, this may be a silly question, but… Did you eat? Have lunch? I didn’t see you in the lunch caravan – trailer, I mean.</p><p><strong>Greg</strong>: [voice over] I, uh…</p><p><strong>Mick</strong>: [voice over] Considering how hard you’re working, I really think you ought to have some grub. And fluids, of course. It’s pretty hot here. Easy to get dehydrated.</p><p><strong>Greg</strong>: [voice over] I don’t actually remember.</p><p><strong>Mick</strong>: [voice over] Well, that’s not a good sign, is it? Why don’t you come out of there and, and we’ll grab you some lunch. And some of that cold sweet tea you lot seem to drink by the barrel.</p><p>Dr Germaine hesitates.</p><p><strong>Mick</strong>: [voice over] Just 30 minutes – maybe an hour – you’ll be back at it in no time. And you know how long it takes for archaeologists to dig <em>anything</em>…</p><p><strong>Greg</strong>: [voice over] Yes. Yes. You’re right. … foolish of me in this heat.</p><p>Mick helps Dr Germaine to his feet and guides him away. The camera doesn’t follow.</p><p><strong>Mick</strong>: [voice over] We’ll use the Jeep. Turn on the air conditioning, even. You can come back fresh in an hour.</p><p><strong>Greg</strong>: [voice over] … it’s waited this long.</p><p>[CUT TO]</p><p>Stewart stands, hands on hips, looking at a steep-sided cliff. It’s covered with moss, sturdy grasses, and stunted trees. It extends in an uneven semi-circle around them. The flat area they’re in, is covered in low bushes. It looks like a Bob Ross painting.</p><p>Beside him, Henry holds his pole and tries to look at the USGS map. A slight breeze makes it difficult.</p><p><strong>Stewart</strong>: Tell me that isn’t a quarry of some kind.</p><p><strong>Henry</strong>: You’d know better than I do, but yeah. It does look man-made.</p><p><strong>Stewart</strong>: But if our site had buildings made from those stones, you’d think the resistance survey would’ve found them.</p><p>Stewart carefully folds the map and tucks it into his notebook.</p><p><strong>Henry</strong>: Geophys has been having some weird issues with this location, though –</p><p><strong>Stewart</strong>: True enough.</p><p><strong>Henry</strong>: And I’m not entirely happy with my readings either.</p><p><strong>Stewart</strong>: It’s almost like we dropped into a black hole.</p><p><strong>Henry</strong>: Well, not a black hole. Maybe a little piece of the Bermuda Triangle.</p><p><strong>Stewart</strong>: As long as <em>we</em> don’t disappear!</p><p><strong>Henry</strong>: Or step out and it’s 20 years later.</p><p>They laugh. Stewart opens his notebook to a blank page, and takes out a pencil.</p><p><strong>Stewart</strong>: Alright. Let’s see what this is made of…</p><p>They walk toward the deep gouge.</p><p>[CUT TO]</p><p>Tony stands just inside the finds tent. Members of the Time Team clean, examine, or wrap the finds for shipment. Their work is a quiet murmur in the background.</p><p><strong>Tony</strong>: As if this site hasn’t already given us enough trouble, what with unreliable geophys and spooky warnings from reliable people, there’s also a problem with our communications. We were told that mobile phones don’t work well out here at the best of times – too remote for a signal tower – so we invested in some high-tech satellite mobiles –</p><p>Tony lifts up the large walkie-talkie he used earlier.</p><p><strong>Tony</strong>: <em>Look</em> at it! It reminds me of the kit from 10 years ago. It’s big and heavy, and it could probably be run over by a lorry and still work. However, we’re <em>still</em> having problems.</p><p><strong>Tony</strong>: [into walkie-talkie] Hello, Stewart?</p><p>[CUT TO]</p><p>Stewart stands in the centre of the possible quarry. He holds a ranging pole with one hand, and lifts his walkie-talkie with the other. Henry can be seen visible walking around the top of the cliff.</p><p><strong>Stewart</strong>: [into walkie-talkie] Tony. Hallo.</p><p>[CUT TO]</p><p><strong>Tony</strong>: I hear you’ve found a quarry?</p><p><strong>Stewart</strong>: [over walkie-talkie] … think … -asuring now …</p><p><strong>Tony</strong>: What’s that?</p><p>[CUT TO]</p><p><strong>Stewart</strong>: Did you hear me?</p><p><strong>Tony</strong>: [over walkie-talkie] … me?</p><p><strong>Stewart</strong>: No. I didn’t hear you. Did you hear me?</p><p>[CUT TO]</p><p><strong>Tony</strong>: Hang on. I’m going to move.</p><p>Tony jogs out of the tent and up to the mound. The camera follows more slowly.</p><p>[CUT TO]</p><p><strong>Stewart</strong>: Tony?</p><p>Stewart looks up at Henry who has stopped to take a reading. It’s obvious that Stewart can’t move until Henry is finished.</p><p>[CUT TO]</p><p>Tony stands next to the mound. He’s looking east over the valley towards where Stewart and Henry are exploring.</p><p><strong>Tony</strong>: [over walkie-talkie] Can you hear me now?</p><p>[CUT TO]</p><p>At the top of the cliff, Henry has moved again, and Stewart has turned so that the ranging pole is easily visible.</p><p><strong>Stewart</strong>: (relieved) Yes. You’re very clear.</p><p><strong>Tony</strong>: [over walkie-talkie] That’s great. Now, what’s this about a quarry?</p><p><strong>Stewart</strong>: That’s right. I’m pretty sure it’s a clay quarry.</p><p>[CUT TO]</p><p><strong>Tony</strong>: <em>Clay</em>?</p><p>[CUT TO]</p><p><strong>Stewart</strong>: Yes, clay. I’ve taken some samples.</p><p><strong>Tony</strong>: [over walkie-talkie] Why would they quarry clay here?</p><p><strong>Stewart</strong>: (laughing) Because it’s here to quarry?</p><p>[CUT TO]</p><p>Tony rolls his eyes.</p><p><strong>Tony</strong>: Is there any way to date the quarry?</p><p><strong>Stewart</strong>: [over walkie-talkie] I dunno, actually.</p><p>[CUT TO]</p><p>Stewart looks over the thick underbrush that fills the quarry.</p><p><strong>Stewart</strong>: There may be artefacts somewhere about, but it would be a major job to find them.</p><p>[CUT TO]</p><p><strong>Tony</strong>: (hopefully) No chance of finding one lying about?</p><p>Stewart’s laughter comes through the walkie-talkie.</p><p>[CUT TO]</p><p><strong>Stewart</strong>: (laughing) If we found one lying about, it could hardly be used to date the site.</p><p><strong>Tony</strong>: [over walkie-talkie] Well, I suppose you’re right.</p><p><strong>Stewart</strong>: (still laughing) Thanks a lot.</p><p><strong>Tony</strong>: I guess, I should let you get back to it.</p><p>[CUT TO]</p><p><strong>Stewart</strong>: Yes, I think so. I think Henry needs me to shift so he can take another reading.</p><p><strong>Tony</strong>: [over walkie-talkie] Right, then. Good luck.</p><p>Stewart says “over” even as he flicks off the walkie-talkie, and fumbles to hang it on his belt.</p><p>[CUT TO]</p><p>Tony turns down his walkie-talkie and turns to the camera.</p><p><strong>Tony</strong>: So between Phil’s flint seam, and Stewart and Henry’s quarry, we’ve found good clues to support the idea that this was once a fairly extensive industrial settlement. Certainly, it was once robust enough to support the building of <em>that</em> (waving at the mound beside him). If we had more time – and a lot more resources – we could probably find the evidence to prove it. But we don’t have either the time, or the resources, so we’re not doing anything.</p><p><strong>Tony</strong>: I’m disappointed, of course, but we were told at the beginning of this dig that we were never going to solve that mystery. (shrugging) So, we’ll log and map everything, and hand all our notes over to Dr Germaine and the Missouri Archaeology Society for whenever someone else <em>does</em> have the time and resources.</p><p><strong>Tony</strong>: (stopping) When will that be? We’ll probably never know. But at least we’ve <em>finally</em> found evidence of our doomed neo-Pagans beyond their skeletons.</p><p>Tony holds his position for a few seconds before relaxing.</p><p><strong>Unknown recordist</strong>: [off screen] Cut!</p><p><strong>Tony</strong>: That good? Yeah? (nodding)</p><p><strong>Unknown recordist</strong>: [inaudible]</p><p><strong>Tony</strong>: Right then. What's next?</p><p>Tony looks at his watch. His shoulders drop in disappointment.</p><p><strong>Tony</strong>: Still 20 minutes to go. We might as well start walking in that direction, I guess. Sometimes, I wish archaeology wasn't so bloody <em>slow.</em></p><p><strong>Unknown recordist</strong>: [inaudible]</p><p><strong>Tony</strong>: Yeah. We can do that. While we walk in that direction. (pointing towards Trench 4)</p><p>There is laughter from off-screen.</p><p>[CUT TO]</p><p>Trish and Ian digging in Trench 4, carefully exposing more of the wheel. Ian’s picking dirt from a corroded metal wheel rim. Trish is brushing out another wooden spoke.</p><p><strong>Tony</strong>: [voice over] The wheel in Trench 4 is <em>big</em> – something like two metres across, and of course, the wood is very fragile. So Ian and Trish have to be <em>very</em> careful. Which means they haven’t come <em>close</em> to the centre yet, and since that’s the only thing that can provide a date quickly, it’s frustrating. At least for me.</p><p>[CUT TO]</p><p>In the middle of the field, Tony stops, leaning in to the camera.</p><p><strong>Tony</strong>: They’ve warned me that the wheel might be only 70 years old, but <em>really. </em>Out here? (waving at the landscape) I’m betting it’s more like <em>250</em> year old. Nothing else makes sense.</p><p>Tony walks off.</p><p>[CUT TO]</p><p>Trish is digging between spokes when she pauses, digs once very carefully, then stops.</p><p><strong>Trish</strong>: Ian? Can you come look at this.</p><p>[CUT TO]</p><p>Ian puts down his tools, and shifts over to Trish. He crouches next to her, back to the camera, and peers at where she’s been digging.</p><p><strong>Ian</strong>: Oh yeah.</p><p>[CUT TO]</p><p>The image changes to an overhead shot of Trish’s part of the wheel. The sun is bright, and the shadow cast by the wheel spokes are sharp and dark.</p><p><strong>Trish</strong>: [voice over] Is that what I think it is?</p><p>The image changes to show Ian and Trish crouched next to each other. They’re squinting in the sunshine.</p><p><strong>Ian</strong>: Might be. Definitely.</p><p><strong>Trish</strong>: Should we call Mick?</p><p><strong>Ian</strong>: I’ll call Mick. You call Tony.</p><p><strong>Trish</strong>: (laughing) Fair deal, I guess.</p><p>Ian walks to the side of the trench. From under a towel, he grabs the large satellite walkie-talkie.</p><p><strong>Ian</strong>: Mick. It’s Ian. Can you hear me?</p><p>[CUT TO]</p><p>Tony lifts the walkie-talkie up, as the camera operator moves around to his front.</p><p><strong>Tony</strong>: [into walkie-talkie] What’s that? You found something?</p><p>He takes off running. The camera hurries to catch up. The image becomes jerky.</p><p><strong>Tony</strong>: (talking over his shoulder) Don’t need to wait the full hour if we’ve got an invitation!</p><p>[CUT TO]</p><p>Tony reaches the side of Trench 4, stopping beside Mick who’s already there. It’s a wide shot of the full wheel location. Next to her part of the wheel, Trish is on her knees but upright, Ian crouches next to her. They’re obviously waiting for the shot to begin. A third digger (later identified as Daniel Dodds) continues working on a different section of the wheel, equidistant from Ian and Trish’s sections.</p><p><strong>Tony</strong>: So what is it? What have they found?</p><p>Close up image of Tony, as he turns to Ian and Trish.</p><p><strong>Tony</strong>: [to Trish] What have you found?</p><p><strong>Trish</strong>: I'm not exactly sure yet, but I think it's a bone.</p><p><strong>Tony</strong>: Ritual artefact?</p><p><strong>Trish</strong>: Or tool? (shrugging) It's under the wheel, so I can only see a very small bit of it.</p><p>A second close-up of Trish's work area still reveals nothing - the wooden spokes cast shadows, and the hole is small.</p><p><strong>Tony</strong>: So you called us over to say you’ve found something, but it’s too early to know what it is.</p><p><strong>Trish</strong>: (smiling) Pretty much.</p><p><strong>Tony</strong>: (resigned) So come back in an hour?</p><p><strong>Trish</strong>: Well, no. It shouldn't take me that long to clear out enough to see. Maybe 45 minutes?</p><p>All the archaeologists smile at Tony’s crest-fallen expression.</p><p><strong>Tony</strong>: (dryly) Much better than an hour. Thank you.</p><p><strong>Trish</strong>: (cheerily) No problem!</p><p>Trish goes back to work, carefully flaking the dirt away from the spoke. The camera stays at Trench 4, and we see Trish, Ian and Daniel working on their parts of the wheel. Daniel scrapes a later of dirt away from beneath his part and exposes flat wood. Another careful scrape reveals more worked wood.</p><p><strong>Daniel Dodds</strong>: Ian? I think I found the wagon bed.</p><p>Both Ian and Tony look up.</p><p><strong>Tony</strong>: Oh yeah?</p><p>Ian’s crouches next to Daniel, and Tony’s moves to the edge of the trench closest to the new find.</p><p><strong>Daniel</strong>: [voice over] This looks like a plank to me - flat and relatively even.</p><p>Daniel traces the outside of the wheel with the tip of his trowel, before tapping the surface below. It sounds solid, and not like dirt or stone.</p><p><strong>Ian</strong>: Yeah, it could be. But how'd it end up <em>under</em> the wheel?</p><p><strong>Daniel</strong>: I'm just an undergrad, mate. I'll leave the theories to the people with their names in the credits.</p><p>Both he and Ian laugh.</p><p>
  <strong>[Logo and Drum Break]</strong>
</p><p>Tony walks away from Trench 4. A recording team circles around Ian and Trish as they dig out the wheel. Mick stays close by, watching with interest.</p><p><strong>Tony</strong>: This morning, Carenza uncovered what appeared to be a pot. Did it belong to our doomed neo-Pagans? Well – like the wagon wheel – I say “yes” but the archaeologists say “maybe”.</p><p>In Trench 3, an orange 4x5 grid has been placed over the copper pot and Carenza is drawing the find <em>in situ</em>. Matt works off to the side. There are several white-ish objects slicing up from the ground where he’s working.</p><p><strong>Tony</strong>: [voice over] It didn’t take Carenza long to find more of the pot and confirm that it’s copper lined with another metal, but it’ll take more investigation before we can say for certain where and when it’s from.</p><p>Matt takes a brush to what he’s working on and it’s now obvious that it’s pieces of pottery – definitely man-made, and too fine to be older than a few hundred years.</p><p><strong>Tony</strong> [voice over] Good news, though! They’ve found some pottery nearby. Unfortunately, it’s all smashed, so it’ll have to be cleaned and reassembled, but tableware changed in both manufacturing and style a lot more frequently than utilitarian cooking pots. Which means <em>it’s better dating material</em>.</p><p>Tony crouches on the edge of Trench 3, halfway between Matt and Carenza.</p><p><strong>Tony</strong>: If Matt can find enough of it, it’s as good as finding a coin.</p><p><strong>Carenza</strong>: (looking up) Actually, we don’t have to wait for Matt’s pottery. I can tell you quite a bit about my pot.</p><p><strong>Tony</strong>: Really?</p><p>Tony moves closer to Carenza.</p><p><strong>Carenza</strong>: Oh yes. For one, it’s <em>definitely</em> 18th Century.</p><p><strong>Tony</strong>: How do you know?</p><p><strong>Carenza</strong>: It’s the shape, mostly –</p><p><strong>Tony</strong>: The <em>shape</em>? It’s <em>flat</em>! How can you tell the shape from… (waving)… <em>that</em>?</p><p><strong>Carenza</strong>: (laughing) There’s also the way the handle is joined to the body. In Europe, before around 1720, the handles would’ve been a separate piece that, sort of, <em>gripped</em> the rim. By the mid-1800s, they routinely riveted handle mounts to the body, no matter what the quality.</p><p>Close up on the handle mount. It’s squished but recognizable. Carenza uses her pencil to point out the features as she describes them.</p><p><strong>Carenza</strong>: [voice over] But here, you can see that a metal tang has been hammered out of the top and a hole drilled into it. The handle would’ve been heavy wire threaded through this hole and then twisted around on itself.</p><p>Carenza gestures while describing the handle and grip.</p><p><strong>Carenza</strong>: If we can find the wire, it might still have its handle – like an extra-large, hand-sized bead  that the wire ran through.</p><p><strong>Tony</strong>: (nodding) Yeah, yeah… Like a tea kettle.</p><p><strong>Carenza</strong><strong>:</strong> Exactly! If we can find that, we’ll be able to use any decorations to narrow the date down even further.</p><p><strong>Tony</strong>: But you have found the wire?</p><p><strong>Carenza</strong>: (shaking her head) Not yet. The metal’s pretty corroded, so it might be gone, but we could still find the ceramic handle, though. Hopefully.</p><p><strong>Tony</strong>: Fingers crossed then. [to Matt Williams] So do we need your pottery?</p><p><strong>Matt</strong>: (laughing) Yeah, of course. This is great stuff.</p><p>He reaches into his finds tray and pulls out a couple pieces. They are about thumb-size.</p><p>Tony walks back to him and takes it to look at. </p><p><strong>Matt</strong>: [voice over] If you look at this sherd, you can see a design.</p><p>Tony flicks some dirt off with a fingernail, revealing a hint of colour. Close up of the piece shows that there is white glaze under the dirt and something else…</p><p><strong>Tony</strong>: (excitedly) Is that… Is that blue?</p><p><strong>Matt</strong>: [voice over] Yes, that’s right. (handing over the other sherd) And this matches it.</p><p>Tony puts the second sherd next to the first and small blue flowers become visible.</p><p><strong>Tony</strong>: My word!</p><p><strong>Matt</strong>: [voice over] Even with that just that little bit of design, we should be able to narrow down the pattern, which will narrow down –</p><p><strong>Tony</strong>: – the date! That’s extraordinary.</p><p>Matt takes back the pottery pieces and lays them carefully in the finds tray.</p><p><strong>Matt</strong>: Of course, the more pieces I find, the easier it’ll be to track down the manufacturer, so we’ll even know where our neo-Pagans came from.</p><p><strong>Tony</strong>: (suspiciously) And how long will that take you?</p><p><strong>Matt</strong>: (waving at the ground) Well, there are hundreds of sherds.</p><p>A shot of his work area shows dozens of sherds already half-revealed, with more light-coloured spots in the gravelly dirt around them.</p><p><strong>Tony</strong>: So… Not soon.</p><p>Matt smiles as he shakes his head. Tony looks at the camera.</p><p><strong>Tony</strong>: Ten years… You’d think I’d stop expecting a different answer.</p><p>[CUT TO]</p><p>Back in Phil’s trench, the high sides have caused one side to be completely in shadow.</p><p>Dr Garcia works on the lit side of the trench. Although there are some larger stones, much of what is shown is dense, pebble-packed glacial till. Beyond him, Phil works carefully on his bracelet. A female digger, looking very young, holds a shoe box generously lined with kitchen paper, ready to accept the bracelet.</p><p><strong>Phil</strong>: (muttering) Come on… Jus’ a bit more…</p><p><strong>Female Digger</strong>: That’s actually fairly wide, isn’t it.</p><p><strong>Phil</strong>: Well, it wuz when it wuz made.</p><p><strong>Female Digger</strong>: Would it have belonged to somebody important?</p><p><strong>Phil</strong>: [voice over] Ooo, well. Don’ rightly know. I ‘spect so, though. (pausing) Tom?!</p><p><strong>Tom</strong>: (still scraping) Si?</p><p><strong>Phil</strong>: This armband. Would it 'ave belonged to someone important?</p><p><strong>Tom</strong>: (straightening) Oh yes. Of course. A mineworker in the Archaic, swingin’ an ‘ammer? Woulda been lucky to have a few copper beads. A full armband? … Probably management. Or a priest…</p><p>Phil carefully uses his dental pick to keep the bracelet in place as he eases the trowel under it.</p><p><strong>Phil</strong>: Conservation’ll be able to tell uz more, I reckon, but that sounds solid t’me.</p><p><strong>Female Digger</strong>: Me too. Thanks.</p><p>Close up as he places the first part of the bracelet in the box. The female digger holds it up to get a closer look.</p><p><strong>Female Digger</strong>: It would’ve been beautiful.</p><p><strong>Phil</strong>: (softly) Still iz.</p><p>They repeat the process for the next two pieces and a small bit that had broken off from the main.</p><p>In the next shot, Phil is standing. He holds the box and turns it gently to see all the sides of what he found.</p><p>A close-up in the bright sunlight picks up the hint of a pattern under the dirt and corrosion.</p><p><strong>Phil</strong>: Sometimes I absolutely love my job. Pulling something 3,000 year old out of the ground… Imagining the person who worked on it… No feeling like it.</p><p>The female digger grins wide and proud in agreement.</p><p>
  <strong>[Logo and Drum Break]</strong>
</p><p>The image returns to Trench 4 – Ian, Trish and Daniel carefully working on their parts of the wagon. Ian wraps kitchen paper and cable ties around a section of the rim before removing it. Then Trish is shown removing a length of the upper spoke, giving her easier access to the wheel underneath – and the possible bones under that.</p><p><strong>Tony</strong>: [voice over] It took Trish just over half an hour to dig out the top spoke, and in that time a crowd started gathering. By the time she was ready to remove the lower spoke, nearly everyone from the American team was up watching her.</p><p>A shot from the elevated platform shows the crowd at the edge of the trench. The American team members wear yellow safety-vests, and make the 3-person recording teams stand out with their heavy, black equipment. Mick is easily spotted in his bright anorak. At the edge of the crowd, Dr Martineau and Mr Pelletier circle the trench, looking for a better view. Beyond them, Carenza’s small team is still working on the pots in Trench 3.</p><p><strong>Tony</strong>: [voice over] Apparently, Lisa wasn't kidding about Greg telling everyone about his "fourteen sacrifices" theory, because everyone is talking like Trish's bone is, of course, going to be that fourteenth skeleton.</p><p><strong>Tony</strong>: (stepping close to the camera) But it could just as easily be a bone from a horse. After all, <em>something</em> had to pull the cart. And anyway, we don’t even know if it<em> is</em> a bone yet. It could just be a large, pale rock – there’s certainly enough of them in the ground around here.</p><p>Back around the trench, there’s a ripple in the crowd. The camera turns in time to catch Dr Germaine pushing his way to the front. It almost looks like he’s going to step right into the trench, but Mick grabs his arm and starts talking and pointing at things.</p><p><strong>Mick</strong>: Ah, Greg. Did you have a good lunch?</p><p><strong>Greg</strong>: What? … I need –</p><p><strong>Mick</strong>: We think we found one of the wagons used by your Europeans to get here. If you hadn’t told us to move our trench we would’ve missed it.</p><p><strong>Greg</strong>: I <em>know</em>. Why … <em>think</em> I told you … ?</p><p>Tony joins Mick and Dr Germaine.</p><p><strong>Tony</strong>: Sorry to interrupt, but a quick question…</p><p>A boom mike slips into frame, which explains the improved sound quality.</p><p><strong>Mick</strong>: Yeah, alright.</p><p><strong>Greg</strong>: What?</p><p><strong>Tony</strong>: How many carts would’ve it taken to transport these people here – with the floor tiles and their households goods? I mean, if we had time to dig it, how many do you think we’d find?</p><p><strong>Mick</strong>: Oh, well–</p><p><strong>Greg</strong>: Six.</p><p>Both Tony and Mick stare at him.</p><p><strong>Tony</strong>: Six? Surely–</p><p><strong>Greg</strong>: There were more at the start, of course. I, um, mean there would’ve been, but they, uh, would’ve broke down. It was – would’ve been – a more difficult journey than, than they ever could’ve imagined.</p><p><strong>Mick</strong>: Alright, but <em>six</em>?</p><p><strong>Greg</strong>: It, uh, is the… The lowest number – the minimum – they would’ve needed to make it here with, uh, what we’ve found so far.</p><p><strong>Tony</strong>: (slowly) Right. So six <em>or more</em>.</p><p><strong>Greg</strong>: (clearing his throat) Yes. If we had time to dig it.</p><p><strong>Tony</strong>: <em>Will</em> you continue to dig?</p><p>Dr Germaine looks bewildered by the question.</p><p><strong>Mick</strong>: It’ll depend on the funding, I imagine, but I can’t think they’d come back here without enough money and manpower to excavate the mound.</p><p><strong>Greg</strong>: Yes! Yes, that’s true. The <em>mound</em> would be the priority.</p><p><strong>Tony</strong>: Does that bother you?</p><p>Again, Dr Germaine looks like he doesn’t understand the question.</p><p><strong>Mick</strong>: Well, yes and no. As usual.</p><p><strong>Tony</strong>: Hmm?</p><p><strong>Mick</strong>: There’s a satisfaction of being on a long excavation – seeing it done from start to finish – but it also means you’re locked in to that project – the people and the bureaucracy. And, (to Dr Germaine) no offence to Missouri, but we’re a long way from a decent cup of tea.</p><p>Tony laughs. Dr Germaine echoes him a moment later.</p><p>There is low murmuring from the gathered crowd, and some laughter from mocking but friendly suggestions between the two teams of diggers.</p><p><strong>Tony</strong>: So the chances of this site being fully excavated?</p><p>Mick pauses, waiting for Dr Germaine to respond, but he’s staring into the trench.</p><p><strong>Mick</strong>: This is just a guess, really, but considering how many mounds there are all along the Mississippi and all the rivers that link to it… That means there are a lot of these mounds close to the cities, and in land that’ll be wanted for development.</p><p><strong>Tony</strong>: So those’ll likely be dug first.</p><p><strong>Mick</strong>: I’d say they’d have to be the priority.</p><p>Another wide shot of the site that pans from the cows resting in the shade under the trees beyond the field, across the mound, to the Time Team finds tent in the gully, catching a bit of the caravan village and the American dig area. The distant horizon draws the eye over land empty of anything man-made. </p><p><strong>Mick</strong>: [voice over] You have to remember, Tone, Missouri is as big as England.</p><p><strong>Greg</strong>: Larger actually.</p><p><strong>Mick</strong>: But there’s only about 7 million people here.</p><p><strong>Tony</strong>: That’s it?</p><p><strong>Mick</strong>: (nodding) Yeah. So it’s going to take a long time before Pete's mound’s in danger of being turned into houses.</p><p><strong>Tony</strong>: Whereas the mounds closer to St Louis, say, those are in more immediate danger.</p><p><strong>Mick</strong>: Exactly right.</p><p><strong>Tony</strong>: Not going to happen in our lifetime, is it.</p><p><strong>Mick</strong>: No. I shouldn’t think so.</p><p><strong>Tony</strong>: So, once again, I’m told I need <em>patience</em>!</p><p>Tony grabs Dr Germaine’s shoulders. Dr Germaine jumps. Tony doesn’t notice just looks around at the crowd.</p><p><strong>Tony</strong>: You know, if Trish <em>doesn’t</em> have a bone, everyone’s going to be <em>very</em> disappointed.</p><p><strong>Greg</strong>: It’s the bones. I need to be ready…</p><p>Dr Germaine shrugs away from Tony and Mick. He, at least, moves along the edge of Trench 4 rather than trying to cut through it.</p><p>Tony and Mick exchange worried looks.</p><p><strong>Tony</strong>: (softly) He doesn’t seem any better, does he?</p><p><strong>Mick</strong>: (softly) No, he doesn’t.</p><p><strong>Tony</strong>: (softly) Should we <em>call</em> someone about him?</p><p><strong>Mick</strong>: (softly) Who?</p><p>[CUT TO]</p><p>Trish uses her tools to clean around her find. It’s considerably lighter coloured than any of the stones in the dirt.</p><p><strong>Ian</strong>: [off screen] You just about ready? Everybody’s waiting.</p><p><strong>Trish</strong>: I think so.</p><p>[CUT TO]</p><p>Ian’s cleared several spokes and most of his section of the rim, and it looks like he’s hit one end of Daniel’s wagon bed.</p><p><strong>Ian</strong>: It’s a bone?</p><p><strong>Trish</strong>: [off screen] Yeah, femur, I think.</p><p>Back to Trish; the camera is closer to where she’s brushing off the bone with a wide paint brush. The image freezes, and the bone is highlighted.</p><p><strong>Trish</strong>: Colour’s right. Texture looks right.</p><p>She lifts her brush and runs her fingers along the bone. It seems like it she sets off a static spark. Her hand stops moving.</p><p><strong>Trish</strong>: [off screen] (softly) Oh…</p><p>The bone darkens where she touched it. Or perhaps a cloud passes in front of the sun. Whatever the reason, the image darkens noticeably.</p><p><strong>Trish</strong>: No, no, no, no… <em>No!</em></p><p>[CUT TO]</p><p>The side of the trench near Mick and Tony. The light from the sun is noticeably dimmer, but it’s easily bright enough to see Trish shoot to her feet as if on springs. Her body is stretched tight as she screams.</p><p><strong>Mick</strong>: Trish! What’s happening?</p><p>Mick moves into frame, obviously planning to step into the trench. An arm blocks the move.</p><p><strong>Pelletier</strong>: [off screen] Don’t! Put this on.</p><p>He places something into Mick’s hand. Mick holds it up revealing a cheap necklace with a pentagram pendant.</p><p><strong>Pelletier</strong>: [off screen] You too.</p><p>He gives one to Tony.</p><p><strong>Tony</strong>: [off screen] What’s going on?</p><p><strong>Pelletier</strong>: [off screen] Nothing good. Put on the necklace, back the hell up, and you might survive.</p><p>[Transcriber’s note: From this point, all the cameras around the Time Team trenches malfunction. Images are generally dim. Plus they randomly distort or flicker. The sound recordings are scratchy, but essentially clear.]</p><p>From Carenza’s trench, the camera swings towards Trench 4. Unfortunately, there's a dark distortion where Trish should be. The crowd surrounding Trench 4 is shifting uneasily and breaking up.</p><p>The image brightens again, and Trish can once again be seen.</p><p>[CUT TO]</p><p>Trish stops screaming, and takes a large breath. The camera image flickers and brightens. There is still distortion however, as Trish’s eyes remain dark.</p><p><strong>Trish</strong>: Ohhh. <em>Lovely</em>…</p><p>Daniel and the second recording crew crawl away as Trish stretches out her arms and wiggles her fingers. Ian stands up.</p><p><strong>Ian</strong>: Trish?</p><p><strong>Trish</strong>: <em>Ian.</em> Oh, she <em>likes</em> <em>you</em>…</p><p><strong>Ian</strong>: Trish? Are you okay?</p><p><strong>Trish</strong>: I’m sorry. Trish is unable to take your call right now, but <em>later… </em>I’ll think about it.</p><p>[CUT TO]</p><p>A low angle on Dr Germaine stepping closer. He lifts a large crucifix.</p><p><strong>Greg</strong>: Infâme démon! Je mettrai fin à ton séjour dans notre monde! [trans. from French: Infernal demon! I will end your sojourn in our world!]</p><p><strong>Tony</strong>: [off screen] Do you know what he’s saying?</p><p>Trish turns to look at Dr Germaine. Her posture indicates disdain.</p><p><strong>Mick</strong>: [off screen] I think he just called Trish a demon.</p><p><strong>Tony</strong>: [off screen] Well that scream was certainly hellish.</p><p>[CUT TO]</p><p>Behind Trish, Dr Martineau approaches the trench. She carries what appears to be a rosary, and looks determined.</p><p><strong>Trish</strong>: Speak English, old man. And let’s get rid of <em>that</em>.</p><p>Trish waves.</p><p>There’s a brief image from Daniel’s camera of Dr Germaine throwing the crucifix away, and then the image goes dark.</p><p><strong>Trish</strong>: [voice over] <em>You</em> stopped praying to <em>Him</em> a long time ago.</p><p>The sound fills with static before going quiet.</p><p><strong>Lisa</strong>: [voice over] I didn’t.</p><p>[There are several moments of black screen, with odd scratchy sounds, a short, sharp “scree”, and then silence.]</p>
  </div></div>
<a name="section0005"><h2>5. Wrap Up</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>Lights come up in the studio. Pictures of Trish Potter, Drs Germaine and Martineau, and a blurry side-shot of Eduardo Pelletier are displayed on screens in the background. In front of them, the presenter sits in a director’s chair, looking grave.</p><p><strong>Presenter</strong>: And that ends the footage. It’s easy to understand why Channel 4 decided not to spend time creating an episode. For one, there was no Day 3, no big finds or grand conclusions to present to the host. For another, both Greg Germaine and Lisa Martineau required medical attention. Trish Potter was pronounced dead at the scene. It was the first and – as far as we know – the only time a dig was closed early.</p><p>Turns to face another camera. The screens show images of Drs Germaine and Martineau.</p><p><strong>Presenter</strong>: In the weeks following, Dr Germaine was put into psychiatric care as a danger to himself and others. He was released in 2005, and killed himself that same year. Dr Martineau recovered from her injuries. She worked as a Forensic Anthropologist until her sudden death in September 2008 in a brutal home invasion. Her killer still hasn’t been found.</p><p>The background screens switch to blurry images of Mr Pelletier.</p><p><strong>Presenter</strong>: We tried to find Eduardo Pelletier, but when we contacted the Unmarked Human Burials Consultation Committee of Missouri, they informed us that no one of that name had ever worked for them. Further, they said they hadn’t sent anyone out to consult on the burials in Pete Yarborough’s land in 2003, because they’d never received a request to do so. Mr Pelletier is as much a mystery as everything else in this episode.</p><p>He turns back to the first camera. The background is blank.</p><p><strong>Presenter</strong>: Pete Yarborough still owns the property. Using the data collected by the Time Team, he filed the paperwork on the mound. It’s now in the Missouri register as a protected monument. As to the place where he found the bodies, when we spoke to him, Mr Yarborough told us that he had fenced off that portion of his field and placed a marker. “No matter what they were up to,” he said, “Nobody deserves be unremembered.</p><p>The pictures are now of Trish Potter with the text “1971 – 2003” on one of the screens.</p><p><strong>Presenter</strong>: As for the Time Team… None of them has ever spoken on record about what they saw after the cameras went dark. We asked Sir Tony about it, and he said, “I made fun of the archaeologists whenever they used ritual as an explanation, but the events in Missouri were a reminder that ritual <em>is</em> a legitimate answer. Rituals existed in pre-history, and they exist today. Whatever their purpose, when enough people believe in them, <em>they have power</em>. All you can do is hope those who wield that power do it kindly.”</p><p><strong>Presenter</strong>: For Channel 4 and <em>Time Team</em>, good night.</p><p>
  <strong>[End Credits]</strong>
</p><p> </p><hr/><p> </p><p>
  <strong>AUTHOR'S END NOTES:</strong>
</p><p>First off, thanks for reading! This was a whole lot of fun for me to write. (Research? Yay!)</p><p>
  <strong>After Fade Out:</strong>
</p><p>I did write a whole showdown thing, but it was draggy (because Dr Germaine spoke in French, Dr Martineau spoke in Latin, and it just didn't work. Besides, this is a Time Team RPF, not a Supernatural case fic.</p><p>This is what I had in mind though:</p><p>In my mind, my doomed neo-Pagans cobbled together some ritual that was supposed to summon Cernunnos. It went horribly wrong and they got an actual demon instead. (As a basis for a Supernatural episode, it's certainly no worse than a wax museum in Ohio spawning a Slavic forest spirit that looks like Paris Hilton.)</p><p>Somehow, back in 1750, the Headman managed to trap the demon in the body it had stolen (the mysterious 14th skeleton), but he was also trapped in his body. So both these evil spirits were stuck in the ground until a couple of unfortunate archaeological teams dug them up.</p><p>When Dr Germaine touched the Headman's bones (or the Horny Man's bone, because you know that joke would come up), the Headman possessed him. Just as when Trish touched <em>her</em> bone and the demon possessed <em>her</em>. The Headman then waited (impatiently) inside Greg for the demon to be found so he could A) vanquish it, and then B) finish the ritual and summon Cernunnos. Yes, this would mean sacrificing another 14 people, so don't feel like he was a hero.</p><p>Dr Martineau was a hunter from way back (because an osteopaleontologist / ghost hunter is a <em>perfect</em> combination). As soon as Lisa had an idea of what was going on, she called in John. She's the one who told John to use the Unmarked Human Burials Consultation Committee as cover. She's the one who vanquished the demon this time (Although the Headman had had faith, Dr Germaine was too much of a scientist to have the same power.) Then her and John had to get rid of the Headman's spirit. (The tent fire was a first attempt to salt and burn the Headman's bones, but it obviously didn't work.)</p><p>I hadn't actually figured out how they managed to get rid of the Headman's spirit, so it's probably a good thing I didn't post this as a WIP!</p><p>Dr Germaine's "random" digging around Trench 4 was actually a large Key of Solomon. It lit up during the battle, and <em>trapped the demon</em>! It couldn't jump bodies, couldn't escape... This gave John hope that he would finally be able to trap (and kill) the Yellow-Eyed Demon, and started him down the path that led to his disappearance before episode 1.</p><p>As for Lisa, she died during the Rise of the Witnesses (4.02 <em>Are You There, God? It's Me, Dean Winchester</em>) as many hunters did).</p><p>
  <strong>Time Team: </strong>
</p><p>I love Team Team, as geeky and weird as that makes me. I’ve watched all episodes and specials available on YouTube (some 250 items). Part of what caught me about this series is how much they love what they’re doing. It’s hard not to share their enjoyment when you’re already interested. Even so, I needed some additional information in order to write the presenter’s bit. My sources include:</p><p>Time Team videos on YouTube: <a href="https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCvmEISc6e4tLwn8TyS14ncw">https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCvmEISc6e4tLwn8TyS14ncw</a><br/>(These are the official, high-quality uploads. They don’t have the complete series yet, so you may have to do a bit of searching for the rest of them.)</p><p>Time Team on Wikipedia and IMDb</p><p>Current Archaeology: <a href="https://www.archaeology.co.uk/articles/features/time-team-the-rise-and-fall-of-a-television-phenomenon.htm">Time Team: the rise and fall of a television phenomenon</a></p><p>
  <strong>Missouri’s History:</strong>
</p><p>As for the location, I’ve never been to Missouri, but the mounds sound <em>incredible</em>. They’d be pretty rare in the area of the state I placed my story in, but not impossible so I included a small one.</p><p>And this article provides some more basic background on mounds and Mississippians:</p><p>
  <a href="https://www.columbiamissourian.com/news/local/ancient-history/article_aef4d888-1602-5b7c-b118-b84b17bf6e9c.html">https://www.columbiamissourian.com/news/local/ancient-history/article_aef4d888-1602-5b7c-b118-b84b17bf6e9c.html</a>
</p><p><br/>Here’s a map pinpointing some of them:</p><p>
  
</p><p>The culture that built the mounds is called the Mississippian (500–1500 AD). There are theories, but nobody really knows how or why they died out – European diseases are a favourite, of course. Whatever the reason, they were long gone from Missouri by the time European explorers, trappers and traders showed up in the 1600s.</p><p>Of course, I read through Wikipedia for the state's general history. I also looked at the <a href="https://dnr.mo.gov/shpo/archaeology.htm">Missouri Department of Natural Resources</a> for archaeological stuff. It's where I got the idea to use the Unmarked Human Burials Consultation Committee as John Winchester’s "authority". (The Committee is a real thing, as is the <a href="https://associations.missouristate.edu/mas/">Missouri Archeological Society.</a>)</p><p>Information on the flint tools found by Phil I cribbed from <a href="http://www.projectilepoints.net/">www.projectilepoints.net/</a> and with help from the Time Team Fan group on Facebook.</p><p>
  <strong>Dating Conventions:</strong>
</p><p>As mentioned in the story, archeology in the Americas doesn’t use Stone Age, Iron Age, or Bronze age. And, of course, they don’t use Roman, Anglo-Saxon or Medieval anything. These stages just didn't happen in places outside of Britain.</p><p>To be further confusing, Time Team used both BC/AD, and BCE/CE as dating conventions, but apparently, North American archaeology tends to use BP (Before Present), meaning before the 1950s. (The 1950s was when radiocarbon dating became practical and common, possibly due to nuclear weapons testing changing the atmosphere).</p><p>Whatever. All the different dating systems made my brain hurt, so I made a chart. It helped. Kinda. (Betas helped more.)</p><p>
  <strong>Cernunnos &amp; "the satanic ritual":</strong>
</p><p>Everything I've read suggests that Cernunnos was a relatively benign god of the forest, hunt, fertility and/or a few other things that could result from his worshippers living close to nature and the Romans trying to take him over. However, he <em>was</em> a Pagan "horned god" so Christians in the 1600-1700s could certainly have believed him to be related to Satan.</p><p> </p>
  </div></div>
</body>
</html>